wedding bell blues again
by jremme
Summary: Ok, it's finished! Thank you for reading! *tear* Ok, basically this is about Wilson's next wedding, and House and Cameron's relationship throughout. Just kind of a fun little fic, with Wilson's mother making House's life difficult. Nothing too serious.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Ok, so this idea came to me really late at night, so I just have to get it on here. I was originally going to make it a one-shot but now I think it's going to be a few chapters. Let me know, though, if you want me to go on. I'm still working on no I in team, this is just a little sideline.

Chapter 1: here we go again 

"Well I did it."

James Wilson, boy wonder oncologist said, striding into House's office.

"You're going to have be a little more specific. I haven't yet perfected my mind reading abilities."

"I asked Mary Ann to marry me."

"Who?"

"The radiologist. The one Cameron set me up with."

"The one with the thick glasses and big feet?"

"They're not big, they're average. Anyway, I asked her."

"Here we go again. And she said…?"

"She said yes! Isn't that great?"

"I'm thrilled for you. And yes, I'll be your best man…again. The only good thing about this is I get to plan another bachelor party. Or whatever you wanna call it."

"I don't think so. Not after last time. _I_ will be planning the bachelor party. Now, where's Cameron? I want to get to her before Mary Ann does."

"She's somewhere doing….something or other. Try the clinic. I may have sent her to do my hours. Or the lab. She likes the lab. The equipment makes her get all teary."

"You're going to be absolutely no help at all, are you?"

"Nope."

Once Wilson had left, House leaned back and started planning yet another kick-ass bachelor party

Cameron was actually in the clinic, which was the first place Wilson tried. She was making notes in a chart when he caught up with her.

"Mary Ann already told me! This is so great! I'm so glad I set you guys up!" She enveloped Wilson in a hug before he could say anything.

"Thanks for that, by the way. She's the best thing that ever happened to me."

"I bet you said that to all your wives," she said with a wry grin.

"I don't recall. But, this time I really mean it. This is going to last forever."

"She asked me to be maid of honor."

"And you said…?"

"I said yes, of course! Big, ugly dresses don't scare me."

Wilson suddenly looked at his watch.

"I'm supposed to meet her for lunch! And I haven't even called my mother yet!"

He took off at a jog down the hallway.

Cameron finished her notes, and went to the conference room, where Foreman and Chase were doing…nothing.

"Shouldn't we have a case or something?" she asked.

"Probably," Chase said, not even glancing up from his crossword.

"Where's House?"

"Planning the bachelor party of the century. He even invited us already," Foreman informed her.

"Somehow, I don't think Wilson's going to go for it." She turned and went into his office without so much as a knock.

"…What do you mean, you're booked?! This is important. This is a multiple failed marriage bachelor party. It's gotta be the ultimate…yea, yea." He hung up and turned to Cameron.

"Gazongas Galore is booked. It's the only decent strip joint in town. Very high class."

Cameron made a disgusted face. "Sounds trashy."

"Shows what you know. Go back out there and knock."

She did so.

"You can't come in. I'm doing top secret guy only business. No girls allowed."

"You're planning a disgusting night of debauchery that Wilson probably doesn't want. It's no secret."

"Well, not anymore, since you opened your big mouth. Get in here then."

She re-entered and closed the door behind her.

"Mary Ann asked me to be maid of honor. I said yes."

"And you're telling me this…why?"

"Because I'm willing to bet you're best man, which means we have to work together to help plan this thing."

"Knock yourself out. I'm busy with my night of debauchery."

"If Wilson doesn't want it, it isn't going to happen."

"You gonna stop me?"

"Please just let Wilson plan his own. He deserves it. I'll do your clinic hours for a month."

"You do those anyway."

"Ok, I won't tell Cuddy who drew mustaches on all the coma patients, as if she couldn't figure it out herself."

"What makes you think you know?"

"Who else could it be? And she did ask me. I told her I didn't see anything but that I thought you were up on the roof at the time."

"Deal. I'll lay off…this time. But next time he gets married, it's all me."

"Fair enough." She left the office to find Wilson and tell him the good news.

**A/N: So, more? Please R&R. For anyone reading no I in team, update should be up by wed. ******


	2. you invited your mother!

**A/N: 1 review, yay!!! Thank you ILUVHOUSE! but oh well, such is the life of a fanfic writer at times. Regardless, I'm going to plug away at this because I have ideas. ******

**Chapter 2: You invited your mother?!**

The day of the wedding drew closer. Cameron, as she'd been expecting, had taken over the brunt of House's duties as well as her own. She didn't mind. After all, if you wanted something done right, you had to do it yourself. House, as promised, had stayed away from bachelor party planning, which was both a surprise and a relief to Wilson.

The eve of the party found Wilson arriving at House's ready for a good poker game.

"We should be out on the town, partying with strippers and getting drunk," House complained as he opened the door for Wilson.

"I don't want to get drunk. I want to have a good time with my friends."

There was a knock on the door, and House answered it. Chase and Foreman stood on the other side.

"Did you guys carpool?"

"Yea, we don't live that far from each other. It made sense," Chase said.

"I hope you brought food."

Foreman thrust a bag of groceries into House's hands and came in, Chase behind.

House took the bag to the kitchen and emptied its contents.

"What the hell?! Tofu, veggies, fruit salad! This is a bachelor party, not a tea party!"

"It's what Wilson wanted," Foreman shrugged.

"Care to explain, Jimmy?"

"It doesn't hurt to eat healthy. You must have the fastest metabolism known to man. By my figures, you should weigh over 300 pounds, the way you eat."

House flicked a grape at him.

There was another knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Wilson made for the door. One of their poker buddies came in, with more health food, much to House's disgust.

"I was expecting more from you…big…white….guy," he said, having no idea what the man's name was.

"It's Nick. And sorry, Wilson I can't stay. I just wanted to drop this stuff off and say congrats."

"Thanks Nick I appreciate it." Nick took his leave with a wave in Wilson's direction and a nod at Foreman and Chase.

"Just two more people," Wilson said.

"Then we can gossip and paint each other's nails," House said sullenly.

"Only if you insist."

The door again, the knock somehow softer.

Wilson moved to answer it, but House cut in front of him.

"I'll get-…" Wilson started, but House had already opened the door.

"Nuh-uh, turn around now, and go home. You're in violation of sacred bachelor party law here."

Cameron brushed past him and inside.

"I was invited."

House glared at Wilson. "No women."

"Cameron is my friend. I wouldn't have met Mary Ann without her. I want her here."

"Did you bring any fruit? We're in the middle of a major shortage here," House gestured at the kitchen counter, full of health food.

"Actually, I brought buffalo wings."

House's eyes grew wide, and he noticed for the first time the bucket of chicken in her hands.

"I love you. You can stay. Hand it over!"

Cameron smiled at the comment and forked over the wings. "I know you're only using me for my wings, but thank you."

Another knock.

"I can hardly wait to see who this is…Cuddy perhaps?"

"I invited her. She couldn't make it."

"Bummer." House opened the door, and immediately shut it again.

"You invited your mother?!" he hissed at Wilson.

"Why not?"

"She's your _mother_. This is supposed to be a bachelor party. You do not, under any circumstances, invite your mother to your bachelor party!"

"Well, I did. Now let her in."

"No, you do it. If I remember correctly, she couldn't keep her hands to herself at your last wedding."

"She likes you."

"Too much, I'm not answering it." He hid in the hallway.

"Fine." Wilson answered the door, and gave his mother a hug. "Hi Mom."

"Oh, James, this is so exciting! My first bachelor party!" House rolled his eyes from his place in the hallway.

"Now, where is Gregory? I know he's not hiding from me!" She glanced around.

"He's in the hallway," Cameron said bluntly. House leaned around the corner and glared at her.

"It's been too long Gregory," Mrs. Wilson gushed. "We shouldn't go so long between visits."

"Hi, Mrs. Wilson."

"I've told you a million times, call me Doris! Now, let's have a hug."

"I really don't think…I have to get the food ready."

"I'm on it!" Cameron called out from the kitchen.

She was awarded with another glare from House as Doris enveloped him in a hug.

"Have you been working out, Gregory?"

"No more than usual."

"You feel…firmer."

House made a face, and wriggled himself loose of her iron grip. He looked at Wilson, who was trying very hard not to laugh out loud. Chase and Foreman were on the verge themselves.

"I'm afraid, James, that I don't know much about poker."

"That's ok Mom. I'll help you through it, and I'm sure House will too."

House sighed loudly, and retreated to his piano, muttering something under his breath.

A/N: I'm stopping here just cause I need to turn in for the night. More of the bachelor party soon, I promise!


	3. don't I get a kiss good night?

A/N: Yay, more readers! I thank you all for your awesome reviews. They inspired to update more. Now, on with the bachelor party action!

**Chapter 3: don't I get a kiss good night?**

Cameron busied herself in the kitchen, laying out the various items and pouring drinks. She glanced at House, sitting morosely at his piano, pecking out a tune, and ignoring Doris Wilson, who stood behind him, al little too closely. Curiosity getting the better of her, she called to him.

"House, can you give me a hand. I don't know where you keep stuff. There's absolutely no sense of order whatsoever."

He got up and shuffled to the kitchen and she asked quietly, "what's with you and Wilson's mom?"

"She got divorced between Wilson's 2nd and 3rd wedding. At the 3rd she was all over me. I guess she wants me to be Wilson's new daddy." He made a face.

Cameron giggled. "That's sweet though, that she thinks that much of you."

"It's just wrong. It's got this whole Mrs. Robinson vibe to it somehow."

Cameron, who had just taken a sip of water, snorted with laughter as she pictured Mrs. Wilson trying to seduce House.

"Don't kill yourself."

Cameron coughed and cleared her throat.

"Game's ready!" Wilson called out from the table set up in the living room.

"You're sitting by me." House ordered to Cameron. "You can keep me sane."

He dragged her over to the table and planted her in a chair, taking the one next to her. As predicted, Mrs. Wilson took the one on his other side. Foreman elbowed Chase and they both snickered.

"Now, Gregory, how do I play?"

House looked at Wilson, pleading with him.

"I'll show you Mom."

"Thank you James."

The game progressed from there with no incident until House felt a hand on his knee. He sighed. Cameron, on his other side, glanced down and smiled.

"I call," she said, laying her cards down.

"Royal flush," Mrs. Wilson said triumphantly, laying her cards down.

"Mom, that's a full house."

"Oh, dear."

"It's ok. It's still a pretty good hand."

The rest laid their cards down, and Wilson pushed the chips in his mother's direction.

"Way to play Mom."

"Yea, Mrs. Wilson, that was some poker face," Cameron said.

"You should play in tournaments Mrs. Wilson…Doris," House said, sarcasm evident in his voice.

Either Mrs. Wilson didn't pick up on it, or she chose to ignore it. She leaned towards House and said, "Thank you Gregory, and that was only my first game. You were such a good teacher." She rubbed his knee.

"But I didn't-," House began.

"Nonsense. You were teaching me in spirit. I could feel it. I think we have a mental connection."

Everyone choked down their laughter, Cameron letting a small giggle escape.

House got up quickly and retreated to the kitchen. "I need…fruit."

"Did you bring the movies Mom?" Wilson asked.

"We're supposed to watch porn!" House called loudly from the kitchen.

"We're not watching porn. I asked Mom to bring some of her movies."

"I can hardly wait," House mumbled under his breath.

"I brought The Sound of Music, The Notebook," House groaned loudly. "And Pretty Woman."

"At least Pretty Woman has a hooker in it."

"It's my bachelor party, I choose. I want The Sound of Music."

"Oh, come on Wilson. Have mercy! This is the lamest bachelor party ever."

"I'm having fun," Cameron piped up.

"Yea, this isn't so bad," agreed Chase.

"Foreman…I'm counting on you."

"I agree with Chase. I mean, we're hanging out together. That's the essence of a bachelor party-to have fun with your friends."

"You're all horrible minions."

"Oh, stop it Gregory. Go with the flow. Here, come sit by me."

"That's ok Doris. I really should sit by Cameron," he blurted out.

Mrs. Wilson looked puzzled. So did Cameron. She shot up an eyebrow at him.

"She is my girlfriend after all. It's only fair." Cameron's eyes went wide. He looked at her pleadingly, begging her to play along. She inclined her head slightly.

"I had no idea you were involved Gregory." Mrs. Wilson looked taken aback. Foreman, Wilson, and Chase looked surprised, but didn't say anything.

"I was going to keep it a secret, but why wait?" House walked over to her and slung an arm around her. Cameron felt herself stiffen at the contact. Then she allowed herself to relax and enjoy the feeling of him being so close. It almost felt natural.

Almost, if it hadn't been for the clearly fake smile on House's face.

Mrs. Wilson bought it. "I'll just sit by James and this nice young man then." Foreman looked uncomfortable for a second.

"But, you make sure you save a dance for me at the wedding, Gregory." Foreman relaxed, confidant that he wasn't going to take over Mrs. Wilson's affections.

Maria began singing about living hills, and House yawned.

"No matter how many times I see this, I still love it," Mrs. Wilson murmured with a smile. "Julie Andrews is so wonderful."

The movie continued, and House felt his eyes get heavier with each song. He glanced over at Cameron, whose eyes were on the screen. Why had he passed her off as his girlfriend? Then he looked over at Mrs. Wilson, entranced by the song "My Favorite Things," mouthing the words to the song.

"_Oh, yea, that's why_," he thought. He yawned again.

As the Von Trapps made their escape from Austria, Cameron was suddenly aware of a pressure on her shoulder that she hadn't noticed before. She looked down and smiled to herself.

House had fallen asleep and was using her as a pillow. She reached her arm around him and absently ran her fingers through his hair. They were supposed to be going out after all, right? She was doing him a favor by playing along, but she could have a bit of fun too.

His hair was surprisingly soft, despite the fact that she doubted it had been combed out in years. She leaned her head on his as the closing credits began to roll and listened to him breathe.

"Well, that was just wonderful!" Mrs. Wilson said, dabbing at her eyes with a hankie. "It always makes me sad at the end." She looked over at Cameron, who removed her head and tried to get the dreamy look out of her eyes that she knew to be there.

"Oh, don't do that on my account my dear, I'd do the same thing if I was in your place."

Cameron smiled at her. She liked Mrs. Wilson. The woman was just so likable.

Wilson shut the dvd player off and stood in front of the screen.

"Well I want to thank you all for coming and…House, wake up!"

House opened his eyes and removed his head from Cameron's shoulder.

"You drooled on me," she whispered with a grin.

"Sorry, it'll dry, I promise," he whispered back. They were close, their faces almost touching.

"Now, as I was saying, thank you all for coming. The wedding isn't for a few weeks yet, but there's still a lot to do. Your support is greatly appreciated. Have a good night, everyone!"

"James, would you walk me to my car please?"

"Sure Mom."

"See you all at work tomorrow," Chase called out as he and Foreman left.

"Bye!" Cameron called, realizing that as the door shut that she was alone with House.

"Well, I'll just get this out now. Thank you. I'm saying it once."

"You're welcome. How long does this go on?"

"Through the wedding. Mrs. Wilson…Doris, will be all over me if she finds out I'm single again."

Cameron snickered.

"It's not funny. It's scary."

"No, I'm pretty sure it's funny."

"Are you leaving?"

"I could…I guess."

"You were going to stay?" He asked it quietly.

"Well, I am your fake girlfriend…Besides, if you're going to fool Mrs. Wilson, you're going to have to fool James, plus Foreman and Chase. Might as well be realistic."

"You just wanna get in my pants."

Cameron blushed. "No, I'm helping you. You're trying to do this half-assed. If you do, it's not going to work out, and Doris will have more than her wedding dance."

House shuddered. "Fine, stay, but sleep on the couch. I know you're dying to get in my bed, but Mrs. Wilson…Doris, has killed any chance of me being up for a fake, meaningless bedroom romp."

"Excuse me? I want to get in your bed?! _You _were the one that started this whole thing. I'm just indulging you. If anything, _you _want me in your bed." She was smiling as said it. She had him, and she knew it, and the fact of him wanting her didn't bother her one bit.

"Good night Cameron."

"You're evading."

"No, I'm not. I'm tired."

"That's another thing. If I was in fact, your girlfriend, would you call me Cameron?"

"Probably."

"You would not!"

"How do you know?"

"Because I know. Call me Allie."

"Allie?! I really wouldn't call you that."

"Don't care. If you want my help, you do as I say. Otherwise, I'm out."

"I like this dominatrix attitude. Maybe a fake meaningless bedroom romp is a possibility after all…but only if you hurry."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I'm too tired for any romping. Good night…Greg."

"No one else is here, must you?"

"Yes. The image must be maintained for continuity's sake."

"Whatever. Good night…_Cameron_."

"Don't I get a kiss good night?"

"You're pushing it."

"Again, do as I say, or I'm out. Regardless of whether there are witnesses or not, this has to look real. How can you expect me to act the part when the others are around if it's not acted out behind closed doors? I'm a doctor, not an actress."

"Fine." He walked over to her and pecked her on the cheek.

"That'll do. Thank you."

He left, closing the bedroom door behind him.

Cameron sighed and grinned as she relaxed on the couch. This could be interesting. She was secretly excited by the fact that this was happening. Fake or not, it made her feel good. If he didn't want her for real, fake could be almost as good. She fell asleep dreaming of the possibilities.

**A/N: That was unexpected. I originally didn't have the fake girlfriend angle in there, it just happened. But, hopefully that'll aid in making it more interesting. And it's a good way to get Mrs. Wilson off House's back. ) Please R&R!!**


	4. Brad Pitt is overrated

**A/N: Just the usual gushing from me about how great y'all are. ******** Thanks for the overwhelmingly good response on this! **

**Chapter 4: Foreman isn't the only one who can pick locks**

Cameron awoke earlier than she would have normally due to the crick in her neck. She sat up, shivering and looking around. It was cold. She was still in her tee and jeans from last night.

"_Where the hell am I…oh yea, that's right_." She recalled last night's events and grinned to herself. Then she glanced at the clock on the nearby shelf.

"Whoa!" She yelped out loud and jumped off the couch. It suddenly occurred to her that she had no clothes to wear and she was already late for work.

"_Why didn't he wake me up_!?_ I don't even have time to go home and get changed!_"

She passed his bedroom door and cautiously opened it, peeking inside.

"_Oh, that's why_."

She tiptoed into the room and looked at the slumbering figure.

"_He looks so peaceful when he's asleep…I wonder what he's dreaming about…probably Doris_." This last thought made her laugh out loud and she quickly clapped a hand over her mouth.

House yawned and sat up slowly. "Were you watching me sleep? That's just beyond creepy."

"Actually I was going to wake you up." She turned her face and tapped her cheek with her finger.

House rolled his eyes, clambered out of bed, and gave her another peck. "Thank you. I expect one every morning and evening." She ignored the second eyeball roll. "We're late."

"And your point is?"

"Oh, excuse me, _I'm _late. You're right on time."

"Perfect as always. I call the shower!"

"House, no, I'm late. Let me go first, please."

"No way, you'll use all the hot water."

"And you won't?!" Cameron looked at him pleadingly.

"Don't look at me like that. You look like one of Wilson's bald headed kids…only with hair."

"I'll make coffee…"

"You would anyway. Face it, the only way you're getting in there first is if you go in with me."

"All right," She said, meeting his eyes.

"What? No!"

"But you just said-…" She began, but he cut her off.

"I said that because I knew you'd be shocked and offended and would never go for it. Fake girlfriend or not, you will draw the line somewhere…obviously it isn't at showering together."

"Then let me go first."

"Never." And with that parting word, he turned and crossed the room to the bathroom faster than he should have been able to, clicking the lock behind him.

"Wait your turn!"

Cameron pounded on the door in exasperation. She was going to be so late. Granted, he was her boss, but it was principle of the thing. Being late was setting a bad precedent. It just wasn't her.

She sat down on the bed and waited. She heard water being turned on in the bathroom and glanced at the clock on the nightstand, watching the minutes tick by.

Then, suddenly, an idea popped in her head, and she headed out in the living room where she'd left her purse.

House had just stepped in the shower, allowing a little more hot water than normal, when he thought he heard a noise, a rattling sound. He shrugged it off. Moments later though, a shadow appeared through the shower curtain.

"_No way…_"

He had just enough time to grab a washcloth before Alison Cameron flung the curtain open, wrapped in a towel.

"Move over. I'm coming in."

"Cameron, what the hell?!"

"Let me in," She said, trying hard to keep her eyes on his face. "I'm not leaving, and you can't make me without moving that washcloth, so you're stuck." She knew she had him and she was loving it.

"How did you even get in here!?"

"Foreman isn't the only one who can pick locks," She replied with a smile, holding up the bobby pin she'd gotten out of her purse.

"I'm changing the lock."

"Move over."

"Do I get to look?"

"No, you perv. Eyes on my face. If they go below my shoulders-…"

"You'll leave?" House asked hopefully, really not comfortable with the situation.

"No, I'll tell Doris we broke it off."

"You wouldn't!"

"Try me."

House weighed his options briefly, then moved over.

"Thank you," She said, dropping the towel without ceremony, and stepping into the shower.

"Eyes Greg."

"Yea, yea."

"You seem like you've done this before," He said, watching her wet her hair.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I have taken a shower before, thanks for noticing."

"You know what I meant."

"I used to with my husband. Have you ever done it?"

"Nope."

"Ooo, a virgin. Fun, fun." She giggled.

"Don't get any ideas about deflowering me in this shower. Not going to happen."

"Suit yourself. Shampoo my hair please."

"What?"

"You heard me…eyes up here. It's your job."

"My job?"

"Yes, now get to it, I'm going to be late enough."

He sighed and got the shampoo down from its place and rubbed it into her hair, letting go of the washcloth as he did so. He could feel her shiver as his fingers touched her. He heard her sigh quietly.

"Thank you," She said, clearing her throat, and standing under the shower to rinse, staring at his eyes as she did so. "Was that so bad?" She asked with a smile.

She picked the washcloth up with her foot and tossed it to him. He caught it and put it back in its place. She rinsed the top of her head, closing her eyes against the water as she did so.

"I know I really shouldn't complain about being in a shower with a naked woman…but this is just weird."

"Would it be weird if I was anyone else…say…Angelina Jolie?"

"Well, no, then it wouldn't be weird, it'd be a dream, which means I would be Brad Pitt, and there would be rugrats running around all over the place, and we'd kick them out every day and have non stop sex in every room of our gigantic mansion. And then we'd-…"

"Enough….eww. Brad Pitt is overrated. You're just as good," She said quickly and waited, for what she wasn't sure. No way he'd return the compliment.

"And Angelina Jolie is… underrated…seriously, that woman is...wow."

Cameron rolled her eyes and tossed her wet hair so it hit him in the face.

"Hey!"

"Now I have to do you…your hair I mean. Turn around." She silently hoped he hadn't noticed the blush creeping up her cheeks.

He obeyed her and she stood on tiptoe and soaped up his hair.

"You got it in my eyes!"

"I did not!"

"Yes you did, I think I'm going blind!"

"Stop it, you are not, and you can rinse now." He turned and stood under the shower, rinsing the shampoo as quickly as humanly possible, closing his eyes as the soap ran down.

"All done?" Cameron asked.

"Yep. Are you?"

She nodded and he shut the shower off. She stepped out first, after wringing out her hair, facing him so as to keep track of his eyes. "Here, this is your towel." She picked up the one she'd had around her, without lowering her eyes, and handed it over to him.

He wrapped it around his waist and stepped out, going to a cabinet and grabbing another towel for her, which she took gratefully.

"Now, honestly, was that so bad?"

"I guess not, but it would have taken less time to take them separately."

She thought a second. He was right.

She walked closer to him until their bare toes were touching. She curled hers over his and heard him swallow.

"But, you gotta admit, it was more fun this way," She said softly, biting her lower lip.

"Or, it would have been, if I'd been allowed to look."

"Fake boyfriends aren't allowed to look," Cameron said smugly, backing off.

"I hate that word."

"What word?" She asked innocently, a wicked grin appearing on her face. "Boyfriend?"

"Cut it out."

"Boyfriend, boyfriend, boyfriend!"

"And everyone says _I'm _immature."

Cameron picked her clothes up and headed to the door to change in his bedroom. She had her hand on the doorknob when he stopped her.

"Cam-Allie?" She paused at the use of her first name.

"Yea?"

"I looked when you had your eyes closed."

"I'm not surprised at all. It figures you would do something like that." She didn't seem angry at all, though.

"_Why isn't she mad? She should at least be annoyed. She threatened me after all_."

Cameron turned the knob and started to leave the bathroom. In the doorway, she stopped and turned around to face him.

"Greg?"

"What?"

"I looked too." She smiled pleasantly and left the room, shutting the door behind her without another word.

**A/N: I wasn't planning on doing that scene so soon, but I really liked it in my head and was anxious to get it posted. What did you think? ******


	5. A plus B equals C

**A/N: Thanks for R&Ring everyone! I'm sorry I didn't reply, but I've been feeling awful lately, so I'm using this spurt of energy to post yet again. This story has become a lot more than I thought it would be, and I'm so so happy about that! ******

**Chapter 5: A+BC**

Cameron drove like a bat out of hell to work and raced to the conference room, where Foreman and Chase sat. Both glanced up as she came in, looking her up and down.

"You're late," Foreman pointed out.

"Your point being?" She asked, not welcoming the questions she knew were coming.

"You're never late," Chase said. "Plus, you're wearing what you had on last night. A + B C."

"And what's C?" She knew he'd tell her anyway, might as well act like it wasn't a big deal.

"C is a very good time had by you, Alison Cameron, last night."

"I slept last night. That's about the extent of my fun."

"Uh huh, but you slept at House's, didn't you?" Foreman asked.

Cameron thought fast. She couldn't deny it. They'd see right through her. Besides, after House's public declaration at the party last night, they wouldn't believe it anyway.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I did."

"Told you she wouldn't try to deny it," Chase said, holding out his hand. Foreman placed several bills into it.

"Where is loverboy, anyway?"

"Chase, don't start with me. I barely got any sleep last night and-…" She turned away, hand over her mouth.

"Haha. I knew it!" Foreman said. The money exchanged hands again.

Cameron was saved from further grilling by a knock on the conference room door. Mary Ann stood on the other side, waving.

Cameron smiled and motioned for her to come in.

"I picked your dress!" Mary Ann squealed, and showed the picture to Cameron. Her eyes grew wide, and her face grew slightly pale.

"It's…umm…well, it's…"

"Big." Chase finished.

"Do you think it's too elaborate? Cause I know it's not supposed to take away from the wedding gown, but I saw it and I just fell in love with it."

"If it's what you want honey, I'll wear it."

"Thank you so much! I know this whole thing is asking a lot from you. I mean, I know you're busy what with work and Greg and everything."

"_Mary Ann knows, now? Oh…of course, Wilson would tell her. All right, that's fine, it's House's problem, not mine_."

"It's no trouble at all. I'm having a blast planning. Speaking of which, I have some cakes I want you and Wilson to take a look at. They're online. I'll give you the site."

She scribbled the site on a piece of paper, and handed it to Mary Ann.

"Thank you my dear. I have to meet James for lunch downstairs….which reminds me, James was looking for Greg for lunch too. Is he in yet?"

"Not yet, but I expect him in anytime now."

As if on cue, they heard the office door open and close. House entered the conference room seconds later and Foreman and Chase started at him, then at Cameron.

"Did you two…" Foreman began.

"…shower together?" Chase finished.

"Yep, sure did," House said. Foreman and Chase shared a look. "What are you doing here what'syourname? I only allow a certain amount of estrogen in this room at a time. Either you or C-Allie is going to have to leave."

"I just came to say James wants you for lunch."

"He invited me? Usually I have to bully him out of his lunch money. You three, find something productive to do while I'm gone." And he and Mary Ann left, leaving Foreman, Chase, and Cameron with the picture of Cameron's dress.

"Are you actually going to wear that thing?" Foreman asked.

"I'm maid of honor. It's my job." Cameron took a deep breath and turned the picture over, out of sight.

Mary Ann and House turned the corner to the cafeteria, and House turned around abruptly and plastered himself to the wall. Mary Ann looked behind her and said, "What?"

"Nothing. Go without me and get Wilson over here." She obeyed and a moment later, Wilson appeared around the corner.

"What is your problem, now"

"What is your mother doing here?!" He demanded through clenched teeth.

"She wanted to see where I worked. I've been giving her the grand tour."

"She's been given the grand tour before. You did this on purpose, inviting me to lunch, didn't you?"

"I might have mentioned you, and Mom said it would be nice if you'd join us."

"I bet she didn't say 'nice' though. I bet she said 'delightful', didn't she?"

"What does it matter? What does matter, is what the hell is up with you and Cameron?"

"Were you not listening to me last night?"

"It just surprises me is all. I mean, I knew you liked her, but I figured I would have noticed something."

House was about to reply when Mrs. Wilson came around the corner.

"Oh, Gregory, there you are! Were you hiding from me?" She winked at him.

"I would never hide from you Mrs. Wilson…Doris." She trapped him in another hug, which he used as an opportunity to glare daggers at Wilson.

"Shall we?" Wilson asked, offering Mary Ann his arm. She smiled at him and took it and they led the way into the cafeteria. Mrs. Wilson looked expectantly at House.

"Yes, Mrs. Wilson…Doris?"

"Well, I'm a lady, Gregory."

"That's blatantly obvious Mrs. Wilson."

"It's Doris, Gregory. And when you're in the presence of a lady you offer her your arm. You are a gentleman aren't you? Because, if I remember correctly, at James' last wedding, you certainly were. Always leaving to get me more champagne, to ask the musicians to play my favorites. As a matter of fact, you were so busy taking care of me, I hardly saw you at all. You were simply delightful!"

House groaned inwardly, but offered his caneless arm to Wilson's mother. She took it, leaning on him more than he was comfortable with and they followed Wilson and Mary Ann.

"So, tell me Gregory, how long have you been an item with that delightful young Alison Cameron?"

"A few months," House replied without thinking, scooting as far away as he could get from Mrs. Wilson, whose hand had found its usual spot on his knee.

"That's just delightful. She's so lucky to have you, as lucky as Mary Ann here is to have my James."

"And I, might I add, am very lucky to have her," Wilson said. The two faced each other and Eskimo-kissed. House made a gagging sound deep in his throat that he unsuccessfully tried to disguise as a cough.

"Feeling left out Gregory?" Mrs. Wilson asked. House paled. She leaned over and rubbed her nose against his. "There you go. Where is Alison anyway? I thought she'd arrive with you. Trouble in paradise?"

"Not at all. She's just busy…doing…doctor stuff." House wrinkled his nose. Wilson just smiled.

"A shame. I was hoping to see her again today."

"Well, I'm going to lunch," Cameron announced. "I haven't eaten since last night."

"Oh, I bet you haven't," Chase said, raising his eyebrows. Foreman snickered.

"Are you guys ever going to let this go, and accept it?"

"Well…" Foreman started.

"Well, what? You want more money?"

"No, we want answers," Chase finished.

"About what? You guys already know that I stayed there last night and we showered together, what else do you _need_ to know?"

"How long this has been going on, for one. We never noticed anything before." Foreman asked.

"That's because House didn't want you to. It's been going on for a few months now." She was surprised how easily the words came to her mouth.

"So you have slept with him?" Chase's turn.

"Haven't you already assumed that?"

"We want… confirmation."

"Well, the truth is that no, I haven't."

"I don't believe that," Foreman said. "This is House we're talking about here."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but it's the truth. Now, if you're done, I'm going to eat. I feel like I ran a marathon last night...and _don't _say anything or else."

They were silent and she left, hearing laughter break out in the conference room at her last comment after she'd shut the door. She sighed and headed for the elevator. She was greeted inside by Todd Porter, a cardiologist.

"Dr. Cameron, it's been a while since I've seen you. Are you still in Diagnostics, working for House?"

"Yes, Dr. Porter, I am."

"How's that treating you?"

"I like it. Dr. House makes things…interesting."

"Speaking of things that interest you, I was just on my way to lunch. Care to join me?"

"_It's just lunch with a colleague. A handsome colleague…that I used to have a crush on. Nothing wrong with that, and it won't blow House's cover_."

"Sure, I'll join you."

"Great. I wanted to discuss something with you actually." They headed into the cafeteria, found a table and sat down. Cameron noticed House with Mary Ann and the Wilsons, and tried to shrink in order to make herself less noticeable.

She didn't know what they'd think of seeing her with Dr. Porter, particularly Mrs. Wilson. She didn't want to make things more difficult for House.

"_Maybe this was a mistake._"

"Alison…may I call you Alison? Are you all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine. What did you want to discuss?" She kept her eyes on House, and averted them immediately when he noticed her.

"Well I just wanted to say that I've been noticing you a lot, and I think I may-…" House appeared then at their table.

"Dr. Cameron, I need you…now."

"Excuse me, Dr. Porter."

"No problem, and please, call me Todd."

"Todd?!" House said out loud as he pulled Cameron into the hallway. "The man's name is Todd? What do you think you're doing?"

"I was having lunch."

"Yea, I saw you having lunch. Mrs. Wilson…Doris saw it too."

"I was hoping she wouldn't notice."

"She notices _everything_. And now, she's convinced we're broken up, or at least on a break. We, by which I mean you, need to fix this."

"What about Dr. Porter? It's rude to just abandon him like that."

"Take a raincheck. I'll give you 3 minutes."

"Fine."

She went back to Todd. "Something came up. Dr. House and I have a case to discuss with Dr. Wilson." She gestured to the other table. "Could I take a raincheck?"

"Sure, actually that was what I wanted to discuss. I'm attracted to you Alison, and I wanted to know if you wanted to go out with me sometime, to dinner maybe?"

"I…Todd, I really can't right now. I'm sorta involved with someone."

"Oh, of course you are. Why wouldn't you be? I'm sorry then."

"It's ok. Look, if anything ever happens, I'll take you up on that offer, ok?"

Todd brightened considerably. "Ok." Cameron patted his hand and went over to the other table.

"Alison, my dear, it's so delightful to see you again." House rolled his eyes behind her back.

"Hello, Doris, how are you?"

"Well, I'll be a lot better as soon as you clear this up for me. Are you and my Gregory ok?" House flinched.

"Yes, we're just fine. In fact, we're better than fine, aren't we babe?"

House made a face at her and mouthed the word at her behind Mrs. Wilson's shoulder. Cameron inclined her head slightly in response.

"That we are," He agreed. "Come here, you," And without warning, he grabbed her hand and pulled her down on his lap, in front of the whole cafeteria. Cameron felt a blush creeping on her cheeks, as numerous eyes were drawn to them.

She whispered in his ear, "What are you doing?"

"Hey, you wanted realism."

She couldn't think of a reply. But she could one-up him.

She turned to face him, and wrapped her arms around his neck. Then, not letting herself think anymore, she kissed him.

It wasn't a passionate kiss or anything, just a little bit more than the cheek-pecks he gave her. Or that was how she'd intended it to be.

He must've had other plans, though, because he deepened it, effectively taking her breath away. She pulled away slowly, catching her breath and looking into his eyes. As she looked, the outside world faded away. It was just them, nothing else. The kiss was all part of the ruse, but she could have sworn she saw the tiniest bit of truth in those blue depths.

"_What is going on here, what am I getting myself into?_" She thought, suddenly unsure of their whole arrangement.

"Simply delightful," Mrs. Wilson gushed, breaking Cameron out of her trance. She whipped her head around, suddenly aware that there were other people in the room. Embarrassment set in.

"Sorry."

"Don't be my dear. God knows I would never be able to contain myself were I in your position." Doris smiled at her.

"Well, this has been…fun, but I have to get back to work," Wilson said. He kissed his mother on the cheek. "Is it all right if Mary Ann shows you out Mom?"

"Of course darling. We have so much to talk about what with the wedding only a few weeks away. The time will fly, trust me! Gregory, it's been delightful, as always."

She turned her cheek to him. House made a face, and quickly pecked her on the cheek, his lips barely touching her.

Doris beamed at him, and took her leave, talking loudly to Mary Ann as they went down the hallway. Wilson said his good byes and left for his office.

"It's the nightmare lunch that wouldn't end," House muttered. He turned to Cameron. "Thank you for that. You saved my ass."

"I have a feeling it won't be the last time, either." She looked in his eyes again. Whatever she'd seen there, it was gone.

"_Maybe I imagined it_."

"By the way, sorry about that, the kiss I mean. It was spur of the moment."

He didn't reply. He looked deep in thought. Then he shrugged.

"Well, back to work." He turned and offered her his arm.

She took it and looked at him quizzically.

"Well, you're a lady, aren't you?"

"I… guess so. Where did that come from?"

"Never mind." They headed back to the conference room.

**A/N: Wow, sorry that was so long. It wasn't intended to go on that long, and I really couldn't find a good stopping place. Please R&R!!!**


	6. the game of Life

A/N: I'm on an updating roll today!! I have nothing else to say except thank you all for the wonderful responses. I'm so happy you're all enjoying this. If you've never played Life before, I apologize. Enjoy!

**Chapter 6: The game of Life**

The day passed on, with Cameron not leaving the conference room. She stayed in a corner working on charts.

"Are you ok?" Foreman asked. He began gathering up his things to leave.

"I'm fine, I just can't leave this room until it's absolutely necessary. I tried to leave earlier to do some clinic hours, and I was bombarded by people asking me about me and Greg."

"News travels fast."

"This isn't a hospital; it's a gossip mill," she sulked.

Foreman grinned. "Well, it is pretty juicy information, I mean, that whole thing in the caf…"

"You know?!"

"Of course. Like I said, news travels fast."

Cameron groaned, and hung her head. When it came to House, nothing could ever be simple. She should've known this would get out of control.

"_On the other hand, though, it was a nice kiss_," she thought to herself.

"By the way, I promised some of the nurses I'd ask you; is House a good kisser?"

"Ugh…this is the longest day ever!"

"Answer the question, please, or they won't leave _me _alone."

"Yes, yes he is good. Great even. The best. There, that should keep them at bay for a few minutes anyway."

"Or seconds," Foreman chuckled. "Chase already left for the day. I'm going to leave if I can get through the hall."

Cameron glanced through the glass. A flock of nurses stood in the hallway, talking amongst themselves. Every now and then, one would look inside, then quickly turn back to the others.

Foreman said good-bye, and opened the door. He was attacked by the pack of nurses, who followed him down the hall and out of sight.

Cameron heard the door open and shut again, and looked up. It was House.

"Those nurses work fast," he commented, looking at her curled up with charts in a corner. "Are you staying at my place again?"

"Your couch is terrible. But, since it was my idea to stay at your place, I'm going to see it through. I just need to get some clothes and things from my apartment. Is it safe to leave?"

"What do you mean?"

"The nurses were stalking Foreman, they've been all over me…"

"They haven't said anything to me. They just giggle and whisper when I pass them. I feel left out."

"Don't. You're lucky." She got up, put the charts away, and grabbed her purse.

"I'll be there in about an hour or so."

"Whatever. Take-out ok for tonite?"

"To echo your words, whatever. As long as it's food. I didn't actually eat anything at lunch. Todd and I got to talking and then you came into it."

"What's up with him anyway?"

"Who, Todd?"

"No, the other guy you were going to have lunch with…of course him."

"I've known him for awhile. He asked me out."

"And you said…?"

"I said I couldn't right now, but I'd take him up on it if something happened. The something meaning Wilson's wedding, unless I get a better offer."

Silence reigned.

Then House shrugged his shoulders and headed out. "See ya."

"_Did I just say that_?" Cameron thought. She rubbed her forehead, and left. A young nurse saw her leaving and caught up with her.

"Are you Dr. Cameron?"

"Yes," Cameron said warily, instantly regretting her response.

"I'm Sheila. I just started a few months ago. I've seen Dr. House around. He's kinda dreamy...those eyes of his, and…he's amazing." She blushed and looked down as she said this. "Anyway, some of the other nurses were saying you two are involved. Is that true?"

Cameron sighed. She had a mental image of herself digging a pit, deeper and deeper. No way out.

"Yes, it's true. We are…involved."

"That's so cool. I bet you guys are so cute together. By the way, you're my new idol. You get to work with him, sleep with him, kiss him…wow!"

"Thank you… now if you'll excuse me, I need to get out of here. It's been a long day."

"Oh, oh right, I'm sorry to keep you. I just saw you and…"

"It's all right." Cameron smiled and left the young girl behind and went out the doors into the late spring evening.

She spent well over her predicted hour deciding what to bring, and ended up shoving things into 3 suitcases and hauling them out to her car before driving back to House's

"Food's cold," was his greeting as he opened the door to her knocks.

"That's ok. I took longer than I thought."

"Are you going on vacation?"

"It was easier this way. Where can I put these?"

"Leave them where they fall. Doesn't matter." He sat on the couch and began flipping through channels.

She deposited both suitcases next to the couch, and went in the kitchen to get her dinner.

She plopped back on the couch and ate, watching him flip.

"Is this whole arrangement…I don't know…weird to you?" She asked.

"No, all part of the ruse. Like you said, realism is important. I can go along with that. Even the shower thing this morning wasn't so bad."

"Yea, cause you looked." She crammed her mouth full of noodles.

"Exactly. And you did, too."

"Yea, and I'd look again."

"Too bad for you…no more sharing showers."

"Why?"

"My place, my rules."

"That's a stupid reason."

"But a reason nonetheless. I'm turning in. You can have the TV."

"You're going to bed now?"

"Sure, nothing's on. Got nothing else to do."

"It's early yet. Come on. I brought a board game."

"You what?"

"I brought a board game. Life. Let's play."

"Now, you come on. A _board game_?"

"It'll be fun, and then you can go to bed, I promise." She looked at him with wide eyes, her lower lip sticking out.

"Stop that. You look deranged. Fine, we'll play."

Cameron triumphantly got the game out, and spread it out on the table.

"What color car do you want?"

"Do I look like I care?"

"Your mouth says no, but your eyes say you want yellow." She held up the car.

"Gimme green."

"Ok, do you want to go to college or just straight to a career?"

"Career."

"Ok, me too. You can go first."

House spun and picked his career. "Sweet, a cop!" He actually grinned.

Cameron took hers and ended up a salesperson. "Huh, that's what I did while I was an undergrad."

"Victoria's Secret?"

"No, Gap."

"Too bad."

They played for awhile and then House landed on the marriage space.

"Do I have to get married?"

"Rules say yes. Choose your woman." She held out a handful of identical pink pieces.

House chose one. "You really get into this, don't you?"

"I enjoy it. Have since I was younger. It's my favorite game. Doesn't require a whole lot of thought. Excellent choice. You've selected Doris Wilson." She giggled.

"Absolutely not!" He put the piece back and selected another.

"They're all Doris! There's no avoiding it. And here, she comes with a kid already." Cameron put a blue piece in the middle row of the car, laughing all the while.

House fought the urge to leave the game and put the pink piece in the very back seat of the car.

"That's no way to treat your wife," Cameron said.

"It is if my wife's Mrs. Wilson…Doris. Take your turn."

Cameron spun and stopped at the marriage space.

"You sped! Pay me!"

"Oh, that's right, you're a cop."

"Damn straight, now fork it over."

She handed him the money, and House handed her a pink piece. "Cuddy."

"No, no, no. Give me a blue one!"

"This would be more interesting."

"For you or for me? Just gimme a blue piece."

He handed her one, and she looked at it. "Brad Pitt. Thank you."

"I thought you said he was overrated?"

"He is, and I did, but that doesn't mean I'd mind being married to him."

"You get Brad Pitt, and I get Doris? Ain't happening!" He pulled the blue piece out of her car, and stuck another one in its place.

"Who's that?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"Come on, tell me."

"It's Tritter."

"Ugh!" She threw the extra cars in their baggie at him.

"Deal with it."

"Fine, your turn."

They continued play and in the end Cameron had the most money and House had the most kids, which Cameron found hysterical.

"That is impossible. Doris is ancient. There's no way she could pop out 7 kids at her age, let alone 2 sets of twins!"

"Stranger things have happened. Maybe your marriage invigorated her sexually, and-…"

"Enough!" House covered his ears.

Cameron just laughed harder.

"It isn't funny!"

"It is so. Look, if it makes you feel any better, I didn't get any kids, I'll take some of yours."

"You'll take all of them."

"I will take _some_."

House tossed her the sets of twins and Wilson.

"Nope, you keep Wilson. You're his daddy now. He loves you. Take him for ice cream."

House grabbed Wilson back and slammed him back in his place in the car. Cameron put House's twins in her own car. "Much better."

"You want kids?"

"Yea, that's why I took them."

"I mean for real?"

Cameron thought for a moment, caught off guard by the question.

"Yes, I do want them. With a man I fall in love with and stay with for the rest of my life. Do you?"

" Do I have to answer that?"

"Yes, please."

"Only after I'm married awhile…and only one, who is exactly like me in every way."

"That would be a clone, not a kid."

"Either way, a mini-me would be all right. He could help me conquer the earth."

"Oh, the horror." Cameron rolled her eyes, and glanced at the clock. "There, now it's late. I'll be right back. She got up and headed for the bathroom.

When she came back, he was asleep, his face on the game board.

"_How can anyone fall asleep that fast_?" She thought.

She shut off the light, sat on the couch, and switched on the TV, putting it on mute so as not to wake him. Despite the long day she'd had, she wasn't tired. Her mind was on overload with the day's events. The cafeteria fiasco, the kid-talk, the nurses, and even Todd, about his offer.

"_It would just be dinner…no, wait, lunch would be better, but not in the hospital. And nothing would happen; I'd make sure of that. I'd love to hear his opinion on the new technologies in the cardiology department. I'll talk to him about it this week, and make it clear that this is strictly a lunch between colleagues._"

She reached over into one suitcase and pulled out a copy of _Jane Eyre_. She opened it to the dog-eared page and began to read.

House woke up about an hour or so later to find himself still at the table, his head on the game board.

"Cameron?" Nothing.

"Cameron?" A little louder that time. Still nothing.

"Allie?"

"I'm in here." She leaned over and he saw her form eerily cast in the light from the TV.

"I didn't wanna wake you up so I didn't turn on any lights."

He lifted his head up and she stifled a laugh. The little car pieces, which he'd been laying on, were now stuck to his cheek. He brushed them off and went to the couch.

"You're reading by TV light? Bad for your eyes."

"Like I said, I didn't wanna wake you."

"What are you reading?"

"_Jane Eyre_. It's about a woman who goes to be a governess and she falls in love with her boss." She stopped there and averted her eyes.

"Sounds boring."

"It's a classic," she argued.

"Classics, by definition, are boring."

"Are not. Some of them aren't anyway."

"I'm going to bed. Good-night."

"Good-night." She turned her cheek to him. He turned her face back.

"I thought we had agreed that I would-…" He cut her off as his lips came into contact with hers. It was a short sweet kiss and she savored every second of it. When they broke apart, she asked, "What was that for?"

"I figured that, after today, you had moved past the cheek thing."

"I already apologized for that."

"I know, but you really didn't need to. You ok with that?"

"It's your ruse. You can kiss me how you want, as long as I get them in the morning and before bed."

"_You'll never hear me complain_," she thought.

He shrugged, then said, "There's an extra blanket I could bring you if you want."

"Yes, please. This room gets freezing at night."

She watched him retreat down the hallway and put her book away. Then she switched off the TV, and changed into her pajamas in the dark, then curled up on the cold couch. He came back with the blanket and draped it over her.

"Thank you."

"Stay warm, and make coffee in the morning, ok?"

She nodded and felt him lean over her and kiss her forehead.

"What was that one for?"

"No reason. I felt like it. Good-night."

"Good-night." She smiled as she heard his door shut and tried to fall asleep, her thoughts still whirling in her mind.

A/N: Another long one. I hope you all liked it.


	7. talks and lunch plans

A/N: It's been forever since I updated, so I apologize for that. Hope you all like this one!

**Chapter 7: talks and lunch plans**

Cameron awoke early the next morning to her cell phone's alarm. She hopped off the couch, folded up her blanket, grabbed some clothes, and went quietly down the hallway.

She opened the door to the bedroom as quietly as possible and actually found herself tip-toeing to the bathroom, wincing at every noise.

She made it safely and shut the door behind her. Then she turned on the water, stripped, and climbed in to take a shower, well before the time House would be getting up. She finished and got dressed as quickly as possible, wrapping her wet hair up in a towel. Then she opened the door and crept out, only to find him awake and sitting on the end of the bed.

"Sleep ok?" He asked, putting her off due to the apparent sincerity in his voice.

"A bit better than the night before, thank you," she replied, averting her eyes so they wouldn't meet his.

"Will you make coffee?"

"Sure, shower's all yours."

"I figured that."

He got up and kissed her good morning, soft and sweet.

"Wow," she said when they broke apart.

"What?"

"I didn't even have to ask for it that time."

"It's part of the routine. I've simply adjusted to the change."

"Uh…huh. I'll get the coffee on. You want eggs or something, too?"

"Whatever you can find in the fridge that's not past its expiration date is fine." And with that, he grabbed his clothes and went past her into the bathroom.

Cameron went into the kitchen, started the coffee, and opened the fridge.

"Yikes," she said out loud.

She pulled the trashcan over to her and began pitching stuff in, making a grocery list as she did. In the end, there wasn't much to choose from, but she did find some leftover pizza that would do for breakfast.

"What are you doing?" He came into the kitchen, dressed, his hair still dripping water.

"I'm cleaning out your fridge. I actually found some stuff in the back that I swear was moving."

"And breakfast?" He pulled two mugs out of the cabinet and poured them coffee.

"On the table."

"Leftover pizza. I forgot about that."

They sat down and ate in silence, and upon finishing, Cameron cleaned up the dishes, and they went to brush their teeth.

"Do you mind if I use your toothpaste? I knew I forgot to pack something."

"If it's between you using my toothpaste or not brushing, then go ahead."

Cameron finished and then pulled on her heels.

"You're actually wearing those? You've gotta be joking."

"Yes, I am wearing them. No pain, no gain."

"What's the gain?"

"I get to be a bit taller."

"Wear some flatter shoes. You don't want to have hurt feet for tonight, trust me."

"Why not?"

"Wilson and Mary Ann are forcing us to have some dance lessons. Even me, though I can't imagine why, but the groom insists."

"And you're still doing it, because Wilson wants you too?"

"Yea, I know, it's a mystery to me too, but there it is. Anyway, flatter shoes, or else you'll be in agony. I've seen it before."

"Stacey?" Cameron almost couldn't say the name.

"Yes, at another of Wilson's weddings. She could barely walk. Stupid thing to do really. If you're going to be on your feet a lot, wear comfortable shoes. It's common sense. We still don't have the technology to perform foot transplants, so take care of what you got."

Cameron removed the heels and put on a pair of ballet flats. "Better?"

"Yes, now if you're ready to go?"

"We're going to work together?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Whatever you say. You're the one with the master plan."

"And don't you forget it. We're taking your car though."

"And I suppose you're driving?"

"You can. I woke up too early. I can nap during the drive." Cameron grabbed her purse and House grabbed his backpack and they left, locking the door behind them.

"So, what time are these lessons?" Cameron asked as they walked into the conference room together. Chase and Foreman looked up at their arrival.

"8:30," Chase and Foreman replied at the same time.

"You guys knew about this too?"

"Yea, House was supposed to tell you…sounds like he didn't though."

"Hey, I told her…this morning. We got any action?"

"Nope," Foreman said, not bothering to mask the boredom in his voice.

"Cool." And he headed for his office, closed all the blinds, and locked the doors.

"Do I even want to know what he's doing in there?" Chase asked.

"He'll be sleeping. He was up early…well, early for him," Cameron answered.

"Great, a House free day. I don't even know what to do with myself." Chase looked amazed.

"Well, there's always the clinic," Cameron reminded him. "I'm heading there myself, after I talk to someone."

"Sounds good. Foreman, you up for clinic duty?"

"Sure, but I'm working my own hours, not House's."

The two men took off for the clinic, and Cameron went to Wilson's office.

She knocked on the door.

"Who is it?"

"Cameron."

"Come in."

She opened the door and found Wilson and Mary Ann looking through sheets of paper.

"Oh, Allie! We found a cake!" Mary Ann showed her the winning piece of paper from the small stack.

"That's the one I liked too. What about flowers?"

"White roses and daisies. I know the daisies aren't traditional or anything, but I love them."

"Whatever you want. Don't worry about what's traditional." Cameron smiled, remembering her own wedding. It had been anything but traditional.

"Did you need something, Cameron?" Wilson asked.

"Well, I was hoping for a bit of advice. Do you know Todd Porter, in cardiology?"

Wilson nodded. "Nice guy. I was going to invite him, but he's got a prior engagement, he said."

"Well, he asked me to dinner, asked me out actually. I told him no, cause of Greg, but I wanted to talk shop with him. So, do you think it would be all right to do lunch instead?"

"As long as House doesn't find out. Believe me, he'll overreact. Whenever I have lunch with a female colleague it automatically means that I _must _be sleeping with her. You know how he gets. Just go to lunch, and have that be that. Nothing more."

"Well of course, nothing more. I'd never want to hurt him, ever."

Wilson looked at her a moment, thinking. Then he said, "Do you love him?"

Cameron thought about that quickly, then opted for the truth, ruse aside.

"I care about him deeply, but, no, I don't think I love him." Then she added, "At least…not yet." The last part had been intended to add strength to the ruse, as she had cared about him deeply long before the bachelor party. But, she realized, somewhat shocked, she had meant that last part as well. And her face showed it.

Wilson nodded again. "Just, well, you remember our talk way back when, right? Before the first date?"

It was Cameron's turn to nod.

"_How could I forget?_"

"Same thing applies. Don't break his heart."

"Thanks for the advice," Cameron said. She gave Mary Ann a little hug, and took her leave.

She headed for the cardiology wing.

"_It's just until the wedding. I'm not invested, and neither is he. We're both just pretending. This isn't about real feelings…or is it? Am I really going fall in love with him? Is he going to fall for me? No, he won't. This is House. He told me himself. He doesn't even like me. The kisses sure feel real though…_"

Her thoughts were interrupted when she bumped into Sheila.

"Oh, Dr. Cameron, hello." The young nurse appeared a little flustered.

"Hey, Sheila. Do you know if Dr. Porter's in his office?"

"He is, I just saw him. How are you doing?"

"I'm great. How are you?"

"The same. Just working. How's Dr. House?"

"He's fine too. If you'll excuse me Sheila, I have to go. It was nice seeing you again."

"You too, Dr. Cameron, you too."

She watched as Cameron went to Todd's office and knocked. Once she was inside, Sheila walked next to the office door and leaned up against it, listening.

"Alison, I wasn't expecting to see you so soon. Something up?"

"Well, I wanted to know if you wanted to go to lunch with me. I actually wanted to talk shop with you a bit, hear about the new innovations the department is implementing."

Todd smiled a megawatt smile. "Of course. I'd love to. When and where were you thinking?"

"In a few days…let's say Thursday at that place on the corner….Louie's.

"Sounds good. I'll meet you at the front entrance at noon on Thursday then."

Cameron said good-bye and left. Sheila saw the knob turn and walked quickly away in the opposite direction.

Cameron went to the clinic and worked with Chase and Foreman until late afternoon.

"I guess I'll see you guys at 8:30. Who all is doing this?"

"Well, there's us, you, House, Wilson, Mary Ann, and Doris…oh, and Mary Ann's brother and cousin," Chase answered.

"Doris, huh?" Cameron said with a grin.

"_Tonight's going to be interesting_."

"And don't tell House that Doris will be there, or he won't come," Foreman added.

"Not a problem." Cameron replied. "I'll see you guys later."

Then she went up to House's office to get him up so they could go to the supermarket.

She pulled out her trusty bobby pin and worked on the lock. It took awhile, but she unlocked the door and went into the darkened room. Once her eyes adjusted, she smiled.

He was sitting in his chair, leaning back with his legs on his desk. His Ipod was on, and there was an issue of _Penthouse_ lying open across his face, shielding it from the little bit of light that squeezed its way through the blinds.

She picked up the magazine with two fingers and tossed it into the trash. Then she pulled his earbuds out and put them in her own ears. A classical piano she didn't recognize. She shut the Ipod off and wondered how to wake him.

The classic method of shaking him came to mind, but that was too rough. She didn't want to make him mad or anything, not if she wanted him to go to the supermarket with her. That was going to be difficult anyway.

She finally settled for kissing him awake.

"_It worked for Snow White_," she thought.

She leaned over him and put her lips against his. He stirred and then opened his eyes. Seeing what she was doing, he kissed her back. Cameron straightened herself up.

"Sorry, I didn't want to shake you awake or anything."

He got up and stretched. "Is it time to go already?"

"You've been out for hours. And yes, it's time to go. I need to go to the supermarket to restock your fridge with edible things before the dance lessons."

"Ok, just give me a minute."

"_He's being awfully compliant_," she thought.

"Ok, just like that? I was expecting more of a fight."

"Expect the unexpected with me."

"That's not much of an explanation."

"But it's all the explanation I'm willing to give. Now, let's get out of here." He left the office, leaving Cameron in the dark, wondering whether or not the real House was tied up in a broom closet somewhere.

**A/N: Ok, that's a wrap! Please R&R! I didn't like this chapter too much, but hopefully you all did!**


	8. supermarket shenanigans

A/N: I was inspired to update by the first season repeat. Nothing like the basics! Enjoy!

Chapter 8: supermarket shenanigans

When they arrived at the supermarket, Cameron took over control of the shopping cart, not trusting House to even do so much as touch it. She browsed through the produce section, stopping occasionally to put apples and oranges and various vegetables in the cart. House followed her with a disgusted look on his face.

"Which do you prefer, green beans or cauliflower?" She asked.

"Which do you think?"

"I think neither, but that wasn't a choice."

"Get the cauliflower. At least it isn't green."

"I'll get both."

They went through aisle after aisle, Cameron adding things here and there, House tossing in junk food and generally anything not nutritious. Then Cameron put some diet soda in the cart.

"Oh, no. I draw the line at diet soda. None of that. It's pure evil."

"It's 0 everything. Plus, no sugar."

"I need sugar, though. How do you expect me to get up in the morning?"

"That's what coffee is for."

House went into the previous aisle. Cameron waited.

He came back with a sack of sugar, which he tossed carelessly into the cart.

"If you insist on diet soda, I'll just add the sugar myself."

Cameron looked at him, exasperated. Then she took the soda out, and exchanged it for the regular kind.

"Happy?"

"No."

"Close enough to it?"

"Yes."

They continued.

"You're keeping the sugar?"

"Yea, I can use it for baking…cookies maybe."

"Now you're talking."

They came to another aisle, and House stopped.

"I'm not going in there."

"It's just the feminine products aisle. It's not going to bite."

"No."

"Don't be a wimp. Come on." She tugged at his arm until he let himself be dragged into the aisle, keeping his eyes on the ceiling.

"Quit being such a baby. It's just tampons and stuff."

"Oh, is that all? Well then, I suppose I should look…whoa!" His eyes shot upward again.

He had looked down into the depths of the aisle only to be confronted by Lisa Cuddy browsing the merchandise.

"House? Cameron? What are you two doing here…together?"

"_She doesn't know? I thought everyone knew_," she thought.

"We're here together because we're…together," House said simply, not looking down.

"Are you going to Wilson's dance lessons?" Cuddy asked.

"Yes, are you going too?" Cameron asked. She couldn't recall whether she'd heard Cuddy's name among those Chase had mentioned.

"I'm exempt. I used to dance when I was younger," she began.

"_Much, much, much, much younger_," House interrupted.

Cuddy rolled her eyes and ignored him.

"Anyway, Mary Anne and Wilson said I could bow out, so I'm looking forward to a nice, quiet evening at home."

"Wish I could have that," Cameron responded, and jerked a thumb at House. Cuddy smiled.

"I always had a feeling you two would end up together."

"_If only you knew_," Cameron thought.

"Well, it was nice seeing you Cameron, have fun at the lessons. And House, don't screw anything up, please." She continued on her way, and Cameron got what she needed, and they made their way to the check out.

"Can't we get at least one frozen pizza?" House whined.

"All right," Cameron gave in.

"Thanks…mom,"

"You're welcome…son."

"I take it back. That was creepy," He made a face.

"Yea, I take it back too," she copied the face he'd made.

They got in a line, and House dumped tabloids into the cart.

"What are these?"

"Gotta keep on the latest Hollywood gossip."

"Since when?"

"Since now."

"Get them out. If I want to see what Lindsey Lohan's up to, I'll check it out online. I'm wasting my money on that trash."

"Who said you were paying?"

"I just assumed I would be."

"You know what happens when you assume?"

"Yes, but-…"

"It's food for my fridge in my kitchen in my home, so I'm paying. Well, I guess you can pay for your…woman things…nah, I'll pay for them too."

"But 10 to 1 odds says I'll be cooking the food, so I'll pay."

They stared at each other for a minute, and then House snatched her purse and held it aloft.

"You are so childish. I can't believe it."

"You sound almost surprised. Why is that?"

"Give me my purse."

"Jump for it."

"No way! Just give it!"

"Only if you swear on the frozen pizza that you won't pay."

"Fine."

"Do it."

Cameron sighed, and laid a hand on the pizza. "I won't pay."

"There, was that so difficult?"

He dropped the purse back in the cart where he'd gotten it, and was silent. He paid for their groceries, tabloids included, since he'd never removed them from the cart, and they took them out to the car, and drove back to House's to put them away before heading to the dance lessons.

"Are we supposed to change clothes or anything?" Cameron asked once they were indoors.

"Why would we?"

"To be more comfortable. I think I'm going to change. You might want to also."

"Why? I won't actually be doing anything."

"You could try, anyway."

"I told Wilson I'd go. I never committed to anything beyond that. Besides, I can't."

"Who says?"

"I say, and my leg says."

"You might surprise yourself if you tried."

"No thanks. I've got my trusty reading material." He patted the tabloids sitting on the table.

"Suit yourself. But, there's gotta be some kind of dance you can do."

"I could probably stand in place and sway. That'd be about it. And even if I wanted to do that, I wouldn't need lessons for it."

"Ok, I'll be back in a bit." She disappeared into the bedroom with a change of clothes.

"You know, you could quit living out of your suitcases," he called down the hall after her.

"Meaning…what?" She asked through the door.

"Meaning, that you could rearrange some of my things and have a drawer or some closet space."

She stuck her head out the door and looked at him.

"You mean that?" she asked softly.

"Yea, I mean, the wedding's still a little ways off, so…if you wanted to…" he trailed off.

"I do want to. Thank you."

"Hurry up, we'll be late."

"_You're _worried about being late?"

"No, but I bet you are."

"You're right there." Her head disappeared and several minutes later she came out again wearing a pair of black yoga pants and a tight aqua top with spaghetti straps. He looked her up and down, and nodded approvingly.

"Nice."

"Thank you. You ready?"

"Maybe I should change. I mean, gotta be comfortable to read about Paris Hilton's latest sex tape."

"Sure…just get a move on. We're running a bit late."

"Told you."

"Well, if you hadn't been such an infant in the supermarket. I shouldn't have made you come. I could've been out of there in half the time."

"Could not."

"Just go."

She went behind him and gave him a little shove.

"I call abuse on that. Aggravated assault."

"Come on, I barely touched you!"

He turned around and gave her a small shove back, even lighter than the one he gave her.

"I call assault back at you!"

"We're even now. I don't feel as victimized."

"Go, go, go. We need to get out of here." She stretched up and kissed him on the nose without so much as a thought. He raised an eyebrow at her and turned down the hallway.

"I figured that would get you moving," she called.

"If that was an apology for assaulting me, it isn't going to work. I still may press charges."

"Anything I can say to get you not to?"

"Nothing you can say…maybe some stuff you could _do_."

"So not going there," she replied, her face reddening. It was difficult to know whether he was still joking or not. She wasn't sure which one she hoped it was.

He came out a minute or so later in his pajamas.

"You're wearing your pajamas?"

"Yea, what's more comfortable?"

"Whatever. Let's go. I don't wanna be the last one there." She grabbed her purse, House grabbed his tabloids, and they headed out.

A/N: There you go! Hope it's decent. Just a bit of a filler chapter, for fun.


	9. dancing disasters

A/N: I wasn't going to update until Monday, but the people want more, so who am I to say no? I hope you enjoy, and thank you for all the written support. On with the dance lessons!

**Chapter 9: dancing disasters**

The dance studio was a short drive from House's but still, Cameron's worst fears were realized. They were the last to arrive.

She ducked with a bit of embarrassment as everyone looked up at their entrance. House found a chair in the corner, which he immediately flopped into, pulling another over to him to put his feet up. He opened a tabloid and began reading about celebrities' plastic surgery nightmares.

Cameron walked over to Wilson.

"Where's your mother?" she asked quietly.

"The bathroom," Wilson replied.

As if on cue, Doris Wilson breezed into the room, and made a beeline for House's corner.

She peeked over the tabloid, causing House to jump, which made Cameron giggle, a hand covering her mouth.

"So glad you could make it Gregory. This is going to be so much fun!"

House gave Wilson the evil eye. Wilson tried to look invisible.

"Well, aren't you at least going to say hello? I've missed your happy face."

House scowled behind the tabloid and muttered something that might have been 'hi'.

"What was that?"

"Good evening, Mrs. Wilson…Doris."

"That's much better. Now stand up, let me see you…it's been…about a week since I last saw you."

"And what a great week it's been," House said, reluctantly standing.

"Are you wearing pajamas, Gregory?" She eyed the navy plaid pajama pants and the Rolling Stones 1975 tour t-shirt.

"Yea, _Gregory_," Chase said, stifling a laugh himself. House gave him the evil eye that was normally reserved for Wilson.

"Am I? I had no idea. I'd better just go home and change."

"Nonsense, Gregory. I think you look adorable." She hugged him then, tightly, House squirming to extricate himself from her arms, which were a lot stronger than they looked.

When she let him go, he actually gasped for air for a moment before retreating back to his chair, and glaring at those present.

The dance instructor entered with a flourish then, throwing the door open and striding into the room with a confident air, which was quickly deflated when House lowered his tabloid, and looked at her with recognition in his eyes.

"I remember you. You came into the clinic last month with hemorrhoids. All better now, I trust?" he asked loudly.

She matched his evil eye with one of her own, and turned to the others.

"Is this all of you?"

Wilson did a quick head count. "Yep, this is all of us."

"All right, we shall start with a simple tango."

"Umm, I can't do that one. I don't want to do a dance that I did at another wedding. I want a new, fresh start with Mary Ann." They smiled at each other.

House rolled his eyes.

"Very well, how about a waltz?"

"Hmmm, sorry, no. Gina." Wilson's second wife.

"The chicken dance!" House called out, and hid behind the tabloid once more.

"How about some simple ballroom then?"

Wilson thought for a second. "That'll work."

They paired up: Wilson and Mary Ann, Cameron and Foreman, Mary Ann's brother, Mark and her cousin, Susan. That left Chase and Doris. Chase paled. But Doris only had eyes for House.

"You're not dancing, Gregory?" She made a pouty face.

"Nope, can't." He tapped his leg with his cane without looking up from the anorexia article he was reading.

"Awww, that's too bad. I would have…how do they say it nowadays….rocked your world."

House made a gagging noise from behind the tabloid.

Chase looked frightened.

"Looks like it's you and me, young man." She smiled at Chase, who plastered a smile on his face.

"All right gentlemen, put your hand on your partner's waist, and your other hand in hers. Ladies, your other hand on the shoulder…hmm, maybe a demonstration. Dr. House, if you would please be so kind?"

"You don't remember me like I remember you, do you? Because if you did remember me, you would never ask me that."

She pulled a riding crop out of her belt loop, walked over to House, and smacked it against the floor right next to him.

"Up! Or else never plan on having any children!"

"Ok." House replied and didn't move.

"House, please." Wilson pleaded.

It wasn't so much Wilson's words as Cameron's eyes that got House up and moving.

"Thank you. Now, put your hand on my waist."

"What?"

"Do it!"

House did so, eyeing the crop.

"Now, take my hand."

"You're lucky I'm a doctor, and I know hemorrhoids aren't contagious through touch."

She stomped on his foot-hard.

"There people, exactly like this."

They shifted a bit to copy her, and the dancing began.

House went back to his corner and sulked.

Time passed, and they got better and better.

House actually stopped reading and watched, his eyes on Cameron. She was intensely aware of his gaze, his eyes burning into her. It made her a bit self-conscious, but not unbearably so. She even found herself trying to move a little more sensually. Foreman whispered to her,

"Why is House staring at me? It's creeping me out."

Cameron chuckled. "I think he's staring at me, actually."

"Right. That would make more sense."

"Very good everyone. Now I'd like to pick up the pace. Dr. House?" She held out a tambourine.

He grabbed it and glared at it.

"Now, just tap it in rhythm."

"I'll try and manage." He did an eye roll, and began tapping the instrument in a steady rhythm.

"Marvelous." She began going into the dance steps. Everyone had a tougher time with that one, but by and by it improved, and an agonizing hour later, the instructor deemed the session a success.

"You've all done wonderfully. I just know the wedding will be lovely. Have a good night."

"Thank you so much," Mary Ann said, she and Wilson shaking her hand.

Cameron said good night to Foreman and Chase. She then caught Doris's eye.

"Alison, my dear, do you know where Gregory has gotten to. I was going to say good bye and I can't find him."

"He's not here?" She looked around for him. He was gone. She sighed and said, "I have no idea where he is. I'm sorry he didn't stick around. I'll be sure to say good bye for you."

"Thank you darling. Give him a hug for me."

"I will." She left.

She found him outside at her car. When he saw her, he gestured frantically at the door handle and jiggled it.

"I'm coming!" She made to the car, and unlocked the doors. House got in and ducked as Doris walked past, waving at Cameron as she went.

"She really is a nice lady," she told House as she got in the driver's side.

"She's a horny old bat."

Cameron started the car and drove back to House's, turning the radio on. Van Halen's _Why can't this be Love _ played softly through the speakers. There was a minute of silence, more awkward than either cared for, and then Cameron reached for the tuning knob.

House's hand was already on it, and her hand closed over his.

"I was just going to change the station," Cameron said, a bit flustered at feeling his warm hand rather than the cold tuning knob.

"I know, so was I."

"How about we just shut it off." Cameron turned the radio off.

"So, what did you think?" She asked, in an attempt to change the subject.

"Of…what?"

"The dancing."

"You guys didn't suck monkeys. Instructor Hemorrhoids, on the other hand…"

"Thank you, I guess."

"You're welcome, I guess."

They arrived at House's and Cameron parked and shut off the engine, but stayed in the car.

"You coming?" he paused, his hand on the door handle, and then settled back in his seat, avoiding her eyes.

"Yea, I forgot. I was supposed to tell you good bye from Doris."

"Oh, god."

"So, good bye." She held up a hand in a wave, then put it back down.

"Oh, and this too." She leaned over, jerked his face to hers, and placed her lips on his, softly at first, then harder. He didn't respond at first, but as soon as she felt his lips push back, she opened her mouth and pushed her tongue against his closed mouth.

Again, the momentary hesitation, but it didn't last. She felt his lips part, and she found his tongue with her own. She crawled over the seat to perch on his lap, facing him, losing his mouth in the process.

This time, he initiated the kiss, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, running her hands through his hair. His hands, in turn, went around her waist, and then snaked up to her chest, feeling her through the material of her tank top.

Feeling the need to breathe, she gently pulled her lips from his, and gave him another little kiss, then another, then she took a deep breath, breathing in the very essence of him, and felt him do the same with her.

"Please tell me that wasn't from Doris too."

"No, that was all me."

"Good."

They stared at each other for a minute or two, then Cameron eased herself off of him as gently as she could, opened her door, and went up to his place, not looking behind her.

House sat there for a moment, then followed her.

They entered, and Cameron turned on the lights and tossed her purse on the coffee table that was its new home.

"I'm turning in," she announced.

"Yea, I think I will too."

"Good night Greg."

"Good night Allie." He went into his bedroom and shut the door.

Cameron shut the light off, and changed into her own pj's. The last thing she was tired. She had been a little sleepy, but the kiss had breathed new energy into her somehow.

She lay on the couch in the dark, with the blanket up to her chin. It smelled like him, and also, a little bit like her own perfume. The combination was wonderful. She replayed the kiss over and over again, wishing she could go back in time and watch it happening.

"_Ok, so maybe I'm a bit more invested than I thought. I must be insane, or at least close to it…no more. This is all pretend. You can't make it real, no matter how much you might want it_."

She closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

House, meanwhile, lay in bed, the light on. A book was in his hand, but he wasn't really reading. He stared at the words, but they all ran together. He put it back on the nightstand, next to the dusty alarm clock, and took off his reading glasses.

He then opened the door and padded out into the living room, looking at the form on the couch, bathed in the light that spilled out into the hallway and beyond from his open bedroom door.

He watched her sleep for several moments, then turned around and back to the bedroom, a small, almost imperceptible grin playing over his lips. After he was gone, Cameron opened her eyes a crack.

"_He was watching me sleep! Does that mean something? I'm acting like a schoolgirl. I need to get a grip. Reality check, Alison_."

She rolled over and pulled at the blanket. She had to get to sleep or she'd regret it in the morning.

**A/N: Ta-da! I hope this played out ok. It was suggested to me to go into more detail with kisses and such, so I attempted to. Hope it was all right. Please R&R! I'd be eternally grateful!**


	10. your special day

**A/N: Ok, I'd just like to say great job to everyone out there who has more than one fic up at a time and manages to update all in a timely fashion. I hope I'm not taking too long between updates. It's a bit hard to keep track. Anyways, chapter 10-the big 1-0!! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 10: ****Your special day**

The next morning Cameron awoke, and rubbed at her neck. This was not going to work anymore. Too cold and too uncomfortable. She wondered how Wilson could stand it. She sat up and stretched, tiptoed silently to the bathroom, grabbed clothes from her newly appointed drawer, and showered as quickly as she could, hoping she hadn't woken up her room-mate.

She had a bit of a surprise planned for that morning. It was, after all, different from all other days, whether House acknowledged it or not. She went back to the living room and rummaged in a suitcase for a couple of things she'd almost forgotten to pack. Upon finding them, she walked to the door, and opened it quietly. She went to his dresser and put one thing in a drawer.

She then walked to the bed and looked at him sleeping until, without opening his eyes, he stated,

"Quit staring at me. It's creepy."

She was tempted to say something about the previous night, but didn't want him to know she'd been awake.

"Open your eyes," she ordered, happiness in her voice.

He did so, yawning, only to see the small box she held out to him in both hands.

"What's that?"

"Your birthday present. I didn't forget."

"It's not your responsibility to remember."

"Just open it, please," she pleaded, and gave him a puppy dog face.

"Give it here then." She put the box in his proffered hand, and he untied the white ribbon and pulled off the green paper.

"A box. How did you know? Thank you, I don't know what to say, really."

"Open the damn box." She bit her lip, waiting for his reaction.

He took off the lid to reveal a golden pocket watch with his initials engraved on it.

"When did you do this?" he asked, taking it out by its chain and holding it up.

"Last month."

He gave her a smile. "It's nice. Thanks." He leaned over and kissed her good morning without being prompted.

"You forgot last night."

"I know."

"Ok, now I'm going to make breakfast while you take a shower."

"What kind of breakfast?"

"A breakfast kind of breakfast. Eggs, bacon, toast, hashbrowns."

"You don't have to do all that."

"I know, but I like celebrating birthdays, and I wanted to do this for you since we've just been eating leftovers."

"You didn't get a cake did you?"

"No," she said, but her smile and the playful look in her eyes gave her away.

"Where are you hiding it?"

"It's being delivered to work. Candles and all."

"Oh, my god."

Cameron left him shaking his head and went into the kitchen to start cooking.

"_My lunch with Todd is tomorrow, I can't forget.Maybe I should cancel. No, that's awful after I brought it up, I can't do that. Well, I've gone over this a million times, and it's just lunch. Besides, it's not as though I'm actually dating House. Yea, everything will be ok…so, why don't I want to tell him?_"

Her last thought left her confused, so she shoved it out of her mind, and concentrated on the eggs.

He came out then, wearing a jacket that he held over his shirt. She grinned. He'd found it then.

"I figured I was supposed to wear this monstrosity."

"You are correct. Thank you for not just pitching it. That's what I figured you'd do."

"I thought I'd humor you."

"Let me see it."

"No, you've seen it already anyway, you bought it."

"I'll rephrase. Let me see it on you."

He sighed loudly and removed his hands from the jacket.

The shirt she'd picked out was black and featured a cake. Words above it read 'It's my birthday!'

"It looks nice."

"It looks ridiculous." His hands returned to his jacket.

"You can't cover it up all day."

"Watch me. Where's breakfast?"

"Table, if you'd take a second to look."

They ate, House one handed, then left for work.

When they arrived at the conference room, House retreated to his office, not glancing at the cake on the table, which, had already been delivered.

As the day passed, Cameron visited the clinic, and chatted with Mary Ann in her office about the upcoming rehearsal dinner. Between them, they managed a suitable seating chart, and Cameron checked to make sure that the catering was still on schedule.

"Can I see your dress?"

"Of course Allie. It's actually here, I had it delivered here, since I'm hardly ever home anymore. Yours and Susan's came too."

"Oh…that's great." She managed a smile, despite memories of the picture of the dress…which were, to put it bluntly, hideous.

"Yours is just beautiful. Wow, I'm jealous!" Cameron ran a hand across the smooth material of the white off-the-shoulder gown.

"Here's yours." Mary Ann brought it out. It was worse up close.

"It's everything I thought it would be, and more." At least it was an honest answer; she just meant it in a negative context.

"Great! I'm so excited. You'll look beautiful!"

"So will you." They shared a hug, and Cameron headed back to her department.

When she came back, she found that Chase had been sneaking bits of frosting throughout the day. She caught him the next time he tried it and smacked his hand away.

"Hands off."

"Well when are we going to have it. It looks good."

"If you all can't wait, I'll get the candles, and we'll eat it, ok?"

The guys nodded. Cameron got the candles out and began postitioning them on the cake.

"Wow, that's a ton of candles!" Chase commented.

"It's not a _ton_." Cameron said, shooting him a Look.

"But it's a lot," Foreman said with a chuckle.

"Cut it out."

She stuck her head in the office door.

"We're doing the cake now."

"Must I?"

"Yes, you must. And thank you for letting me do all this. I'm enjoying it."

"At least I get free cake." He got up and went to the conference room, still hiding the shirt from view, where Chase was counting the candles out loud.

"Finish counting and I'll kick your ass down to the clinic for the rest of the month."

Chase stopped halfway through the 20's.

"Ooo, wait a minute, I forgot something!" Cameron dashed back into the office and then came back.

Minutes later, Wilson and Mary Ann arrived, and Wilson glanced at his friend.

"Why are you holding your jacket closed?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"I would."

House ignored him and Cameron lit the candles.

"Ok, everyone, sing!"

She led a rendition of 'Happy Birthday' with Wilson and Mary Ann backing her up, while Chase and Foreman mumbled along half-heartedly.

"All right, blow em out!" She prompted.

"Come on."

"Please, just do it, before the room catches fire."

"Wouldn't take long with all those," Chase whispered to Foreman and they both snickered.

House sighed again, and blew. All but 6 went out.

"Yay!" Cameron clapped, getting into the spirit. She blew the rest out and began cutting the cake.

"What did you wish for?" She asked.

"That this day were over."

"You told, so now it won't come true."

"Bet it will."

"Eventually, yes, but not yet. Cake?"

"What do you think?"

She passed him a piece. He took a bite, and made a face.

"What's this crap?"

"It's sugar-free. Made with Splenda."

"Yuck."

"Oh, come on, you can't taste the difference."

"I can."

"He's right, you can," Wilson said. "But it doesn't matter, because it's healthier, and that's the important thing. The cake Mary Ann and I chose is sugar-free."

"Thanks for the warning," House said, choking down another bite of cake.

Cameron boxed up the extra cake and put it by her purse to take back…well, home, she guessed, at least for the time being.

"No way is that going in my fridge. It'll infect the junk food I have in there."

"Healthier food isn't a virus."

"All the same."

"I'll take it. I thought it was great," Foreman offered. Cameron handed him the cake, with a silent thank you. Everyone said their good byes and headed out into the evening.

**A/N: This got too long for me, so I cut it in half. Second part will be posted ****soon.**** I'm actually still working on it. Please R&R and thank you so so much in advance!**


	11. my special place

**A/N: Ok, I was going to write a new chap for blood curse, but I'm tired and have a headache, so I'm just going to finish this last half of the too long chap 10. Enjoy and please review! I was majorly bummed about chap 10****, I must confess****. Was it bad? **

**Chapter 11: my special place**

House and Cameron got into her car, and Cameron pulled out, but didn't head for home.

"You should have turned there."

"I know. I'm taking you somewhere special to me."

"Should I be worried?"

"Nope."

She drove until they hit the outskirts of the city, and kept going. She turned the radio to a hip-hop station, content that no love songs would play. House covered his ears, letting go of his jacket in the process.

When they were out in the middle of nowhere, Cameron turned on a gravel road, and drove another couple of miles before turning into a field. It was dark by this time.

"Here we are."

"There's nothing here."

"That's the whole point. Now, come on." She got out of the car, and went around to the other side, opened his door, took his hand and pulled him out.

He stood there, his hand in hers, and said, "Now what?"

"Now, this." She let go of his hand and climbed on the hood of her car, leaning against the windshield.

"Come on up."

He clambered up gracelessly, and sat close by her.

"And?"

"And look up." She looked up herself and he followed suit.

The clear night sky met his gaze, accentuated by millions of stars, and a full moon.

"Wow," he breathed.

"Yea, I love it out here. It's quiet and you can see the stars."

"You come out here to think, then?"

"To think, dream, whatever. It's a good place for that."

"Except for the insects."

"Yea, sorry, I forgot about those."

"Thanks for this. This is nice. I like quiet."

"I know."

"Happy birthday."

"Actually, this was a good one."

"I'm glad I could help out."

"Enjoy yourself today?" He asked her.

"Yep, I like planning things. I'm having fun with the wedding too. The rehearsal dinner is Friday, by the way."

"I figured, since the wedding's Saturday and all."

They sat in a companionable silence, looking at the sky, when Cameron felt his hand close over hers. She smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"What do you see when you look up at the stars?" She asked.

"Stars."

"Look harder. I see endless possibilities, infinite distance, and a natural beauty like no other."

"I see…the big dipper."

"Ooo, where?"

He pointed and she followed his finger.

"I never looked for constellations before. I just looked at the sky as a whole."

"See, there's stuff you're missing too."

"See any others?"

"Orion's belt..right over there."

"I don't see it."

"That line right there, where I'm pointing. Are you blind?" He smirked as she elbowed him in the ribs.

"I see it now."

"No, you don't"

"Ok, fine, I don't."

"Well, it's there."

Time passed, and she was surprised to find herself dozing off. She lifted her head and looked over at him. He was still awake, staring at the stars.

"You ready to go back?" She asked.

"No, I think I still have a little more blood left that the mosquitos haven't taken."

She laughed at that, and said, "Well I'm ready."

"Were you thinking?" He asked her.

"Yes."

"What about?"

"Things."

"Not quite what I was looking for."

"Were you thinking?"

"Yes, same as you, about things."

"Let's get going, it's late."

She hopped off the car, and extended her hand to him. He opted not to take it, and got down smoother than she'd expected. They got in the car, and she drove back. They walked up to his place, leaning slightly on each other.

Once inside, it was clearly bedtime, as both were yawning, and nothing was on TV.

Cameron stared in disdain at the couch, then headed to brush her teeth, beating House to the bathroom. Once done, she opened the door to find him watching for her to come out, already in his pajamas.

"You done then?"

"Yea, good night."

"Good night." He got up and kissed her good night on his way to brush his own teeth, and she turned and headed for the empty living room.

"Where are you going?" He stopped her as she stepped out into the hallway.

"To bed."

"Well, it's painfully obvious you hate the couch. You spend the mornings rubbing your neck. You've said before you freeze out there. I just thought…" He shrugged and didn't finish his sentence.

"You thought what?" Cameron asked.

"That you might want to sleep someplace else; in here for example."

"I would like that, if you don't mind."

"I invited you, didn't I?"

"It sounded more like you expected me to ask."

"So, ask then." He averted his eyes from hers.

"Can I sleep in here?"

"Yes, you may. On the floor."

"Not much of an improvement from the couch," she said, looking doubtful.

"Or I guess you can crash in the bed," he told her quickly, making the words run together.

She grinned at that. "Are you nervous about me sleeping in your bed?"

"Not at all. There have been so many other women who've slept in it, what makes you so damn special?"

Her face took on a look hard as steel. "I'm not a hooker, and I'm sleeping with you, not _with _you," she replied tartly, going into the other room to change.

He called after her, "Which 'with you' carried the implication of sex?"

"The second one, that I'm _not_ doing," she said, just as curtly.

"Thanks for clearing that up."

She was offended, that much was plain. He hadn't meant to cause that reaction, but it was par for the course. And he certainly wasn't one for apologies, so it was just going to have to hang in the air until she forgot about it.

He got in on his usual side of the bed, and left the light on for her so she wouldn't trip over the mess that lay about the room. He tried to ignore her presence when she entered, but it was difficult. She went around picking up various pieces of clothing and tossing them in a corner, for lack of a hamper.

"Stop the Ice Queen routine."

"Pardon?"

"You're mad, I get it. But freezing up is just going to make us both cold."

"I have no idea what you mean."

"_She wants an apology. Of all the stupid things, a meaningless apology._"

"If I implied anything earlier, I meant nothing by it."

"Is that your version of an apology?"

"It's as close to it as you're going to get."

"Then I'd better accept, huh?"

"I would."

"All right."

The tension in the air lessened, and she shut the light off, sat on the edge of her newly appointed side-of-the-bed, and chuckled lightly to herself.

"What now?"

"You have the left side."

"So? I figured you'd want to be closer to the heater."

"The left side is always the evil side. A mere coincidence? I think not."

"Ha, ha. I get it. Because I'm evil, I was inherently drawn to the left side. That's good."

"I thought so."

She sat there for a few more minutes, then swung her legs into the bed and laid her head on the pillow.

"This is much better, thank you."

"Sure, just hope I don't wake up to find you using me as your own personal pillow/teddy bear."

"Why? What would you do?"

"I don't know yet, but I'm sure I'll think of something."

"You don't scare me," she said, closing her eyes, with a smile on her face. She did roll around a lot. Who knew the position she'd end up in.

**A/N: Okey, dokey, that's it for tonight. Please, please review! It would make my day. ****Give me some love!!**


	12. it all comes crashing down

**A/N: It's my day off, and I'm in an updating mood! Sorry for the wait, it's that time of year again. Enough of my excuses! Please read, review, and enjoy!**

**Chapter 12: ****It all comes crashing down**

The next morning, Cameron yawned without opening her eyes, relaxing against the softness of the bed. She hadn't realized how much she'd missed sleeping in a real bed. No way she was going back to the couch after this. She rolled over and opened her eyes, finding her face an extremely short distance from House's.

She started for a second, then relaxed again. She'd forgotten about the previous night's events.

"_I'm in bed with him_." The reality struck her and she peeked under the covers tentatively, just to make sure nothing else had happened that she didn't remember. They were both fully clothed. She sighed in relief. If they did have sex, she wanted to remember it the next morning.

She sat up carefully and got out of bed, as silently as possible, instantly grateful that there was no familiar stiffness in her neck or back. She crept around the room to the closet, and picked out the days clothes. Then she headed to the bathroom to shower, leaving her bedmate still fast asleep.

She showered longer than she'd meant to, and upon coming out, found him waiting, tapping his cane on the floor.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to take so long."

"I was about ready to get in there with you, just to save time, you know."

"I know. Well, it's all yours now." She moved past him and as she did, he grabbed her around the waist, pulling her toward him. Then he put his lips over hers and kissed her good morning.

She heard herself sighing at his touch, and reigned in her emotions before things got too far. He pulled away from her and went to the closet, brushing her clothes to one side and yanking the first of his clothes his hands touched.

"I'll just put some coffee on," she said, making her exit. Every time he touched her, she could swear her feet left the ground.

"_If only this was for real_." She put the coffee on and scrambled some eggs for breakfast.

He came out, his wet hair sticking out at every possible angle, and she stifled a laugh.

"Do you ever comb out your hair?"

"Is there a reason to?"

"I'll take that as a no. May I?"

"May you what?"

"Comb your hair."

"No! It's functional, it's fine."

"It's a mess. Please?"

"Will you quit bugging me if I let you?"

"Yes."

"Whatever turns you on."

"Do you even have a comb?"

"If I do, it'll be in the top drawer of the dresser."

She went into the bedroom and opened the top drawer. It was packed. She began rummaging through it, and at the bottom found a box with no paper and a tag. Curious, she took it out and read the tag.

"_Greg: Please use this. My love, Stacey_."

Cameron made a face in spite of herself, and opened the box. It was a comb. A nice one, at that. It was probably quite expensive. And he'd never used it; that much was clear. She took it out, holding the handle by two fingers and tossed it in the trash can, followed by the box.

"Couldn't find one?" He asked her as she returned.

"Nope. You look ok as is." She smiled. Better messy hair than using the Stacey comb.

They ate the eggs Cameron had made, finished off the pot of coffee, and headed out the door together.

Once at work, House made his usual retreat to his office, and Cameron sat down, nervously awaiting her lunch with Todd Porter.

"_It's just lunch. It doesn't even come close to qualifying as a date_."

She kept glancing at the clock on the wall, until she thought she might go insane. She got up abruptly, heading down to the clinic so she'd at least have something to do. Chase and Foreman looked after her.

"What's up with her?" Chase asked.

"I dunno. Maybe her and House are fighting or something," Foreman replied. Chase shrugged, and looked back down at his crossword.

Cameron was in exam room 1 with a little girl and her mother, when there was a knock on the door. Her first instinct told her it was Todd, but it was too early and he didn't know where she was.

Dr. Cuddy stepped into the room. "There you are. Dr. Porter was looking for you."

"_What? It's too early for lunch!_" One look at her watch told her otherwise.

"Oh, thank you, Dr. Cuddy."

"Are you ok? You look a little pale."

"I'm fine. I just had a question for Dr. Porter about the new cardiology equipment." She rubbed her temples."

"Ok, he's waiting for you near the registration desk."

She left, and Cameron diagnosed a sinus infection and prescribed some medicine for the little girl. Then she took a deep breath, steadied herself, and went to meet Todd.

"Dr. Cameron…Alison, right here." Todd called out to her from the desk.

"Ready for lunch?" She asked.

"Definitely. I'm starving." They left together, not knowing they were being followed by a certain young nurse.

They walked to Louie's and were seated at a table, and brought menus.

"So, you must be excited about all the renovations in the cardiology department," Cameron began, determined to break the uncomfortable silence.

"Yes, they're just wonderful. They help the entire department run more efficiently."

He reached over and took her hand, suddenly leaning in close to kiss her.

"Todd, no, I told you, I'm with someone."

"Are they here?"

"No, but that doesn't make it any less wrong. Please, this is strictly platonic."

"Oh, I apologize. I assumed that when you invited me, it was for a deeper reason."

"Not at all." Cameron looked away. "I thought this might be a mistake."

"No, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have seen something that wasn't there to begin with."

"It's ok, I just don't want anything getting back to him."

"Understandable. That little screw-up is just between us."

Sheila, who had been watching through the window of the restaurant, covered a hand with her mouth to hide her gasp. She had seen enough. She turned and headed back to the hospital to pay a visit to one Dr. House.

The lunch improved drastically for Cameron after the misunderstanding. She learned a lot about the department and its new equipment and construction. She'd always held an interest in the field, but was embarrassed to admit she didn't know all that much about it. After they'd eaten, they headed back, still in conversation about Porter's latest patients.

House was sitting behind his desk, thinking about Cameron. The whole set-up was strange, and kept getting stranger. But, amazingly, it felt good. It felt right. Sure, the main goal had been to keep Doris at bay, and it was working wonderfully, but he wondered if there might be more to it than that.

He had to talk to Wilson. But he couldn't, not without giving up what he was up to. He was on his own on this one. He thought, tossing his tennis ball in the air over and over again. Finally, he threw it up higher than usual and as it came down, he smacked it with his cane, sending it crashing against the door.

He was lost. He hated to admit it, but it was true. He was also falling for her, something else he didn't care to admit.

"_Just admit it to yourself. Get it over with_."

Then out loud, he said, "I like her. I like Cameron."

He deflated in his chair, putting his head down as far as it would go. The next step was to tell her, but how to do it. After debating several possibilities, he decided to do it then and there. He was about to get up and go find her when a knock on the door made him snap to attention. Without an invitation, it swung open, revealing someone he couldn't recall ever seeing before.

"Who the hell are you?"

"My name is Sheila, Dr. House. I'm an admirer of yours."

"So that gives you the right to barge into my office?"

"I knocked. I have something I think you'd like to know about your girlfriend."

Cameron and Porter entered the hospital together, still chatting away, unaware of how close they were to each other, and oblivious to the form watching them from above, tapping his cane against the floor to a rhythm that only he could hear.

The two said their good-byes, and parted ways. Cameron headed for the elevator to return to diagnostics, and House headed back to his office to wait for her, now convinced that the nurse had been on to something.

When Cameron entered the conference room, she found two somber colleagues who looked up as she came in.

"I wouldn't go in there if I were you," Foreman warned.

Her hand paused on the doorknob. "Why not?"

"He's been throwing a bit of a tantrum," Chase informed.

"What happened?" She asked, concerned.

"We were coming back from lunch when we saw some nurse go into his office. She came out about 5 minutes later, then House left, came back, and started throwing things and swearing," Chase filled her in.

Cameron stood there a moment, fitting the pieces together.

"_Oh, my god. Sheila. She must have seen Todd and me…seen what he tried to do….and told….oh, my god. But why does he care? It's not like we're actually going together, after all…unless…he likes me_."

She prepared herself for the worst, and opened the door.

The office was a mess. Everything thrown everywhere, papers, the phone, books, all over the place. He was sitting at his desk, his hands covering his head, either unaware of her presence or ignoring her. She stepped closer.

"What do you want?" He asked her sharply, a tone she couldn't recall hearing before. It reached new depths of coldness, mixed in with anger, hurt, and the worst feeling he could probably experience: a loss of pride, shame. Because he liked her, had been vulnerable enough to admit it to himself, only to find this out.

"It isn't what you think," she began.

"On the contrary, it's exactly what I think. I saw you in the entrance. You were so close you were practically on top of each other. And, wow, I don't blame you. He's younger, and he can run and dance, and everything. In fact, I think you should go to his office right now, and…"

She cut him off, hands over her ears. "Stop it, just stop it! You're not even letting me talk!"

"Don't have to, and don't really want to hear it. You can pick up your stuff tonight. I'll get a ride from Wilson."

Cameron bit her lip to keep from crying. It was pointless though, and she felt the tears begin to fall.

"What about D-doris?" She stammered.

"Don't care." He said, and got up without another word, heading for the hall. Once he was gone, she collapsed to her knees among the mess and sobbed. She'd ruined everything.

**A/N: Hope you liked it! A bit of a cliffie, I know, and I'm sorry, but it was a good stopping place. Please PLEASE R&R!! I won't update till you do, cause I'm just that cruel. **


	13. revenge

**A/N: Happy Holidays to everyone and I'm sorry to keep you waiting so long! Without further ado, here's chapter 13, enjoy!**

**Chapter 13: ****revenge**

When Cameron finally lifted her head up from the floor of the office, it felt like it been forever. Glancing at her watch, she saw that it had only been about 5 minutes.

There was a tentative knock at the door, and she heard herself make some sort of whimpering sound, and Foreman and Chase strode in and silently began cleaning up. She stood up, composed herself, and joined them in picking up.

She was carrying a pile of old papers to the trash, after checking to make sure they weren't anything important, when she spotted the glint of gold in the trash can. Her heart nearly stopped as she pulled out the watch she'd given him the other day. She felt fresh tears come to her eyes. She struggled to hold them back, and pocketed the watch, not keen on letting the guys see.

Once the office was decent again, they sat her down on the couch, and she spilled the whole thing, House's idea to keep Doris away, and the lunch with Todd, hiccupping and sobbing throughout.

"My conclusion is that he must really like you. I mean, for real," Foreman put in. "I mean, this mess wasn't really like him, and from what you've told us…" he trailed off.

"Wow," was Chase's response. "He really doesn't like Doris. Well, seems to me the only sensible thing to do is to get revenge on this Sheila girl."

"I don't think she meant to intentionally hurt me," Cameron began. "She just misinterpreted what she saw, and told House because she didn't want him to get hurt."

"Maybe, but if that is the case, it doesn't warrant revenge, so try again," Chase prompted, eager for some afternoon excitement. Cameron glanced at Foreman. He just nodded.

Cameron sighed and began again. "She had a crush on House, and wanted us to break up so she could have a shot at him, so when she found out about my lunch with Dr. Porter, it was the perfect opportunity. She saw some things, and blew them out of proportion."

"That's better," Foreman said.

"I wanna go pick up my stuff before he gets back. I don't want to see him right now," Cameron said, head down.

"All right, you go on, and Foreman and I will think of a plan. Just come back after you get your stuff."

She left without another word, just a sad glance in their direction.

She drove to his place, found his spare key, and let herself in. She gathered up her things from her drawer, the closet, and the bathroom, thankful that she'd just done a load of laundry the previous day.

As an afterthought, she found a notepad and a pen, and wrote down what had actually taken place, everything he wouldn't let her say earlier. She read it over twice, and started the note again once until she was completely satisfied with the contents. Then she taped it to the fridge.

She checked every room to make sure she hadn't left anything, coming across, after rummaging, the box his watch had been in. It was in the top drawer where the evil Stacey-comb had been. The attached card was in the box. She took the watch out of her pocket and replaced it in the box.

Then she left, locking the door behind her.

When she returned, looking this way and that, lest she run into him, she found Chase and Foreman sitting innocently in chairs near the clinic.

"Good, you're back. We came up with something," Chase said. He sounded like a small boy planning a prank phone call.

Cameron sat in the empty chair between them and they filled her in. She found herself smiling devilishly in spite of herself as she listened.

The three convened in House's office, where they'd gathered the necessary supplies for the revenge. The door was left open.

"This is so juvenile," Cameron said.

"Which is part of its appeal," Chase argued. "It's perfect. All right, tell me what you all think."

He did his best House impression. Cameron glanced at Foreman. They shook their heads at him. He tried again, and got the so-so gesture.

"Third time's the charm." He tried once more, and got the thumbs-up.

Then he turned to the phone and dialed the nurse's station, asking for Sheila.

"All right, finish getting it ready, she's on her way," he ordered, shutting the lights off.

They hid behind the desk, save Chase who sat in House's chair, resulting in a great amount of satisfaction. He turned it around to face the window, and they waited. There was a knock on the open door. Sheila appeared in the doorway, peering into the darkness.

"Dr. House?" she began. She stepped on the threshold, and closed the door, causing the bucket above to drop down, coating her with honey, which Chase had stolen from the cafeteria. She fell on the floor yelping about her hair, and Cameron came out from behind the desk and turned on a mini fan, which blew a pile of feathers in front of it directly onto Sheila. They turned the lights on then, and Chase helped her up and into the chair.

She didn't even struggle, maybe because of the surprise or the feathers in her eyes. Chase wound the linen gauze from the clinic around and around her, effectively securing her to the chair.

Then Foreman plucked the feathers out of her eyes, and she saw them in front of her. Cameron sat on the edge of the desk, in front of her, and asked with an even voice, "What did you say to him?"

She didn't say anything for a moment, and Cameron leaned down so their faces were even, and took the other girl's chin in her hands, forcing her to make eye contact. "Tell me!"

Sheila talked. It had been a little bit of both of Cameron's earlier theories. Sheila had misinterpreted what she'd seen and heard with regards to Todd, and had told House, both to keep him from finding out later, and to possibly give her a chance with him.

"You know, he'd never go for you. He hates your type. Plus, you're even shorter than me."

"You never know," Sheila replied stubbornly, her eyes still focused on Cameron.

"Yes, I do know. Do you want out of that chair so you can get cleaned up. You look like crap."

"Of course I want out."

"Too bad. What do you guys think?"

"Too bad," came the reply in unison.

"Sorry, but looks like the consensus is a big 'no'. Tell you what. We'll get you back to your department. It's the least we can do."

She and Foreman pushed the chair into the hallway and toward the elevator, ignoring all the looks they received from those walking past. Chase stayed behind to clean up the office for the second time that day.

They pushed the chair into the elevator, and Cameron punched the number of the nurse's lounge, both of them waving pleasantly as the doors closed.

"So juvenile," Cameron repeated as she and Foreman made their way back.

"Yea, and you loved it," he replied.

She nodded, unable to hide the grin on her face. "I did, but it doesn't solve everything."

A thought hit her like lightening. "Oh, god, and the rehearsal dinner is tomorrow. I'm sitting by him, and he needs to act civilly. It's going to be a nightmare if this isn't cleared up by then."

"Knowing House, it won't be," Foreman said, earning him a glare from Cameron.

"What? I'm right, and you know it."

They went inside.

"Where did you get those feathers?" Cameron asked Chase, who was sitting and making motions at them with his hands.

"He's here," he said, rather than an answer, still motioning them. It was now clear to both that he was motioning them to leave.

Cameron backed up, out of the door, the guys behind her.

Once, safe in the clinic waiting room, she repeated her question.

"I tore up a pillow in the oncology lounge."

Cameron chuckled. "Thank you, both of you."

"Not a problem. Anything else we can do?"

"No, I wrote him a note explaining it all when I picked up my things. Hopefully, he'll read it, cause he sure wouldn't let me talk." She put her head in her hands, and sighed. All she could hope for was that this wouldn't ruin her friends' wedding.

She said her 'good nights' and 'see you tomorrows' to Foreman and Chase, with the promise to call if anything happened, and drove home. She suddenly felt exhausted and burst into a fresh set of tears after realizing that she'd driven to his place, not her own. She turned around and this time arrived at the correct address, suddenly feeling exhausted. She crashed into bed without dinner, and lay there, sleepless, cold, and dreading tomorrow.

House sat in his office, oblivious to the fact that it was clean. He wasn't doing anything, just sitting. Finally deciding to waste time at home instead, he left, also not noticing the lack of ducklings, who usually stayed later than he did.

He arrived home to find it Cameron-free. It felt empty for some reason. It had never felt like that before Cameron had stayed there. He made himself some coffee, not really feeling like food, and drank. He'd talked to Wilson earlier without divulging anything about the ruse, or even about Cameron. Just that he was angry at Cuddy over the clinic hours she'd assigned him. 'Cuddy', in this instance, was secret code for 'Cameron' and 'clinic hours' was code for 'all over Todd Porter with evident intentions of fornication'. Wilson had listened, as he always did, and had made him swear to stay sober until after the wedding.

He shuffled into the kitchen, figuring he oughta eat something, when he noticed the note taped to the door of the fridge. He removed it, noted Cameron's name at the bottom, and promptly tossed it in the trash.

Deciding once again against food, he just went to bed, hoping he could avoid both Cameron and Doris at the rehearsal dinner tomorrow night.

**A/N: I know, I know, conflict still not solved, but it will be, I promise!! Please R&R!**


	14. ok again

**A/N: Thought all you wonderful people could use an update! I know how I'm going to end this, but it's getting up to the ending I'm having issues with, so bear with me as I muddle through the next couple of chaps. PLEASE REVIEW!!! I love it so ****so**** much! Enjoy!! **

**Chapter 14: ****ok again**

The next morning Cameron woke up, immediately missing the warm presence that had been next to her the previous morning. She hadn't heard anything from House, so she figured either he hadn't read her note, or hadn't bothered with a phone call. She considered calling in from work, but decided against it. She had to face him sooner or later, and sooner was better; before the rehearsal dinner that night. She got ready as quickly as she could, and left.

When she arrived in the conference room, her colleagues were sitting down, looking subdued.

"Is everything…ok?" She was almost afraid to ask.

"Yep, he's not here yet," Chase told her.

"Thank goodness." She slumped down in her usual chair.

"Tonight should be interesting," Foreman said, breaking the silence.

"Do not remind me. This is a disaster. And my fault, on top of everything else. I should have seen…" she trailed off.

"Seen what? That he liked you back? It's not like it was there for the world to see. Anyone could have made the same mistake." Foreman put a hand on her shoulder.

"But I think I did realize it. I never told him about my lunch with Todd. It shouldn't have mattered, so I shouldn't have had a problem with telling him. So why didn't I? Because some part of me knew he'd have a reaction. Why would he have a reaction? Because he'd get jealous. Why the jealousy? Because he liked me." She took a deep breath. "Why did he like me? I have no clue whatsoever."

"Because you're fun to be around, you're bright, you're beautiful, you're everything he should want," Chase said. Cameron crashed her head down on the table with a thud.

"Thank you," she said, her voice slightly muffled. Then her head snapped back up as the office door opened and shut. The three exchanged looks. Cameron thought.

"_I should at least try and talk to him again. __If not for myself, then for Wilson and Mary Ann._"

She stood up, took several calming breaths, and stalked purposefully to the door separating the two rooms. She opened the door and strode in without so much as knocking.

It was clear to her right off the bat that he'd had a worse night than she had. He looked as bad as she felt. He didn't acknowledge her presence, only looked at her, as though waiting for her to speak. At least she was allowed that much this time.

"I'm here to try and explain things again, if you would please hear me out," she began.

He bit his lip, silent for a moment, before getting up and heading out the door, leaving her discouraged, and getting angrier by the second at this latest rebuff. Instead of staying where she was, like last time, she followed him, fists clenching ever tighter.

"Why are you following me?"

"Because you won't let me talk, and if you'd just give me five minutes-…"

He turned on her then, and she almost bumped into him.

"Five minutes to what? Make it all better? Not gonna cut it. I saw what I saw."

She looked him in the face then. "Why do you give a damn? It was all fake anyway, right? I could've jumped Porter in the lobby and it shouldn't have made a difference to you at all!" She stood on tip-toe to make them more even in height

"WHY. DO. YOU. CARE?!" She accentuated each word by poking his chest with a finger.

He avoided her eyes completely. "I don't."

"Well, you couldn't prove it by me. Everything these last couple of weeks indicates that you do. The kissing, the supermarket, the closet space, this completely unfounded jealousy, your tantrum; all of that says you do care; so, tell me why!"

She stood back from him then, and continued backing up until her back hit the wall, then she slid down it, crumpling in a heap on the floor, hiding her head in her arms. She felt his presence next to her a couple of minutes later.

"Do you know what I was doing before I saw you and Porter?"

"How would I know?" She kept her head covered and tried to keep her voice level.

"I was coming to terms with the fact that I had developed feelings for you over the last couple weeks. And once I'd done that, I was about to go find you and tell you, but was interrupted by Sheila. Which, I guess, was a good thing, because I wouldn't have found you since you were out on your _date_."

"It wasn't a date; it was lunch, just lunch. The lunch you told me to take a raincheck on that day in the cafeteria."

"It's not the lunch that bothers me, it was what I saw afterward."

"Which meant nothing."

"How do I know that?"

"Because if it had meant something, I wouldn't be following you around trying to fix things. I'd be with Porter."

"So, are you mad at me?" He asked. She looked up at him, surprised by this sudden letting down of the walls he put up around himself.

"I'm thoroughly amazed that your immaturity could reach the depths it has, since this could have been resolved not too long after it started. I'm mad about that. Mostly, I'm mad at myself though. I should have told you what was going on, even though I figured it was none of your business."

"Everything's my business. And you didn't answer me."

"Yes, I am mad at you. You could've ruined our friends' wedding! I don't suppose you thought of them for even a second during all this."

"Nope."

Silence reigned.

"Are we ok?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Yea, we're ok."

She got up off the floor, and they walked back to his office.

"I threw away the present you gave me."

"I know. I fished it out of the trash. I put it in the box in your dresser drawer."

He nodded, his hand on the doorknob of his office.

"Do you wanna stay tonight?"

"I thought you'd never ask. And you owe me a kiss."

He put a hand on either side of her face and looked her in the eyes.

"I like you," he said.

She felt a smile come to her face. "I like you too, but I suppose you already knew that." She rolled her eyes at her obvious statement, and was stopped mid-roll by his lips over hers. She closed her eyes and felt that familiar feeling wash over her, that feeling of being completely lost, and wanting to stay that way forever, as long as he was with her.

Then he seemed to remember that they were in a crowded hallway and he pulled away from her slowly. She moved forward toward him, not ready to give him up yet. He put a finger to her lips, his eyes moving to indicate their surroundings to her. She found herself lightly kissing his finger, her lips hungry for any part of him that was near enough to kiss.

He compromised with her, wrapping his arms around her in a hug instead. She returned it, and they stood in the hallway, just holding onto each other. She felt her shoulders begin to shake with emotion.

"Don't start," he said quietly. Then he let her go, and disappeared in his office. She went back to the conference room, and found the guys just as she'd left them.

She smiled. "Do you guys even do anything anymore?"

"Nope," Chase answered her.

"Lunch? My treat."

That got them up and moving.

"So, I'm guessing everything's all right with you and the boss man now?" Foreman asked.

"Yep, we're ok again."

"Thank god," Chase said. "Because there was no way I was going to clean up that office again. I felt like his mother or something."

They headed down to the cafeteria, Cameron with a little bounce in her step. Everything was the way it had been at the beginning of this fiasco. Full of possibilities. The only difference was that now, it was for real.

**A/N: Ok, I will admit, I was going to drag the conflict out until the actual wedding, but I decided against it just ****cause**** everyone wanted to be over already! See what reviews can do!! I hope the resolution was good for everyone. I'm not overly thrilled with it, but hopefully it worked for you!**


	15. musical chairs

**A/N: Ok, I think I'm on a roll here. I'm attempting to complete this by the end of the week, but we'll see. I'll probably get burned out first.**** That aside, enjoy, please, and review, review, review!! Let me know how it's going and if you ****have ****any suggestions for the end of this fic or any ideas for future ones. I love feedback!! It's the author's most important tool. **

**Chapter 15:**** musical chairs**

The rest of the workday was a blur for Cameron. She checked in on Mary Ann before she left to get ready for the rehearsal dinner. The other woman was anxious.

"Oh, thank god you're here!! I'm freaking out here!"

Cameron crossed the room to her and hugged her tightly.

"I'm so scared," Mary Ann cried.

"It'll be ok. Everything's ready to go. And tonight will be fun, trust me. I've double and triple checked every possible aspect of this wedding. It will be perfect."

Mary Ann pulled away and looked her friend in the eye.

"Thank you for everything. I couldn't have done any of this without you."

"I didn't do that much."

"Oh, please, you practically planned this single-handedly."

She glanced at her watch.

"I gotta fly. Susan picked up her dress already. You can grab yours too, just so you have it." She breezed out of her office, and Cameron grabbed the hideous dress and made her own exit.

She headed for her apartment, thankful that she hadn't unpacked her suitcases yet. She flung open her closet doors and began flinging outfits on her bed. She tried about half on, and narrowed it down, until she picked a winner, dark purple button down shirt and black slacks. She put on a pair of Mary Janes, and put on some light make-up. She kept her hair down, then grabbed one of the suitcases and her purse before heading out the door to House's.

House arrived at home and flopped on the couch, seeing no need to change for the dinner. Then he stood back up and went to his trash can, pawing through it until he found Cameron's note. He went back to the couch and read it over.

_Greg,_

_I'm not sure if you'll even read this, but I hope you will. I never meant to cause all this trouble, but it seems to follow me around. There is nothing going on with Dr. Porter and me. I approached him about lunch days ago to talk shop, which we did. He misconstrued the reason behind my invitation, which is what Sheila observed. I didn't let it get any further than that, and explained to Todd that I didn't feel that way about him and he had the wrong idea. And know also, that I don't feel that way about him because I feel that way about you. I know you're thinking that you already knew that, but I don't think you do. I can't even really describe what I feel for you, and I was hoping that you had a fraction of that feeling for me. Anyway, I'm running out of space, so I'll just say this: I'm so sorry for everything, and please know that no matter what happens, I'll always feel this way about you._

_Allie_

He carried the note to his bedroom and tucked it in the box in his dresser, removing the watch and putting it in his pocket. Then he heard the door and went into the other room to see Cameron standing there with a suitcase.

"Sorry, it wasn't locked," she said.

"It's ok." He took her suitcase and put it back by the couch where she'd had it before.

"I read your note."

Her face flushed, and she averted her eyes.

"I thought I was supposed to read it."

"Well, yea, before we made up." She looked him up and down. He looked the same as he had that morning.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yea." He held the door open for her and she stepped out, hearing him shut and lock it behind them.

She drove to the rehearsal dinner and he dozed off in the car.

"Do you ever not sleep?" she asked.

"I didn't much that night you were in my bed. Probably only a few hours that night."

"Did I snore or something?" She was horrified at the thought.

"No, not at all. I…just couldn't stop looking at you. That you were so close."

The admission brought a smile to her face, and she lifted her hand from the steering wheel and caressed his cheek before returning it to the wheel.

They arrived at the restaurant for the rehearsal dinner, and were shown into a private banqueting hall, and, as always, they were the last to arrive. House immediately squirmed as Doris's eyes were drawn to him the second they crossed the threshold into the room. They took their assigned seats, House across from Doris, and dinner was served a bit later.

"So, now what?" Chase asked, eliciting a quiet laugh from the other occupants as they finished eating.

"Well, tomorrow, it would be speeches next, right dear?" Mary Ann asked.

"Yea, I know Cameron has a good one planned." Wilson shot her a smile.

"I hope so," she replied, returning the smile.

"I knew I was forgetting something," House mumbled next to her.

"Then guess what you're doing tonight," she said, not surprised at all that he hadn't worked on his speech.

"But I had plans for tonight," he looked at her meaningfully.

"Speech first."

He fidgeted and she looked puzzled for a moment, until she looked under the table and saw Doris running her foot up and down his calf. Oops. She hadn't been thinking when she and Mary Ann had finalized the seating chart.

"Ok, now, we're going to go through a rough, very rough, re-enactment of tomorrow," Wilson announced. They practiced their entrances and exits and timings and where to stand. After several repeats of the whole process, wedding music included, bride and groom were both satisfied.

"All right, after the ceremony and the seating and speeches, we eat, do gifts, and then the dancing. I don't know what else to say, except thank you so much everyone!" Mary Ann concluded, and glanced at Wilson. "Did I forget anything?"

"If you did, then so did I." He kissed her forehead, and everyone awwwwd, save House, who gagged, only to get a swat from Cameron and Doris simultaneously.

"Quit ganging up on me!"

"Oh, stop it Gregory, you'll get your chance sooner or later. In fact, I remain shocked that no one has snatched you up. Next to my James, you must be the most handsome man on the planet." House scowled and didn't reply. Cameron elbowed him, giggling.

"Thank you Mrs. Wilson…Doris, you're too kind," he said batting his eyelashes, before his fake smile melted back to the scowl.

"Oh, always, Gregory. You know, this impending wedding brings back memories of James' last wedding. Do you remember?"

"I can't get it out of my head, Doris," House said, then muttered under his breath, "no matter how hard I try."

Curious for more details, Cameron reminded herself to ask him about it later.

"It's one of the better times I've had in my life, I think."

House made a groaning noise and inched away from Doris, who only inched closer to him. Cameron watched the exchange and chuckled, as did her fellow ducklings, who found their boss's attitude around his friend's mother nothing short of hilarious.

"So, I guess that's it. We still have about an hour or so on this room, though, so if everyone wants to stick around we can get drinks or something," Wilson suggested.

"No, let's do something fun. How about musical chairs? There are enough of them in here, and enough room."

Cameron clapped her hands at Mary Ann's suggestion.

"Whatever you want. You're the bride." Wilson conceded, and they all helped in positioning the chairs, save House, who crashed in one, and watched the proceedings.

"Oh, no, you don't, you're playing," Cameron said, grabbing his hand and attempting to pull him out of the chair.

"No way."

"Oh, come now, Gregory, it would be simply delightful if you played. Why, I haven't played this in so long, I feel as frisky as a schoolgirl again just thinking of it."

House made a face when she uttered the word 'frisky' that could have soured sugar.

"That's just wrong," he whispered, but finally allowed Cameron to pull him into a standing position and over to the chairs.

"Ok, now we need music." Wilson grabbed the boombox he'd brought and took out the CD of the wedding march.

"Anyone got any music in their car?"

"I do, James, I'll be right back." Doris headed out to her car.

House rolled his eyes. She came back with the Sound of Music soundtrack which she passed to Wilson. He asked for someone to take charge of the music, and completely ignored House's hand waving frantically in front of him, selecting Foreman instead and earning them both glares from House.

The CD was put on shuffle and they all trooped around the chairs as the song_ Sixteen Going on S__eventeen_ blared. Foreman hit the pause button and there was a mad scramble for chairs. Mary Ann's cousin Susan was first out, followed by Chase and then Wilson.

_The Lonely Goatherd_ began playing and those remaining circled the chairs cautiously, glancing at Foreman for a cue as to when the music would stop. Finally, silence hit, and Cameron found herself fighting House for the remaining chair. She wrestled with him for a minute, oblivious to the others in the room, and finally he pinned her hands behind her back and took the chair.

She made a face at him, and he stuck his tongue out at her, and waved her over to the 'losers pool' as he'd dubbed it. She walked over to the corner, feeling his eyes on her as she walked, and thinking about other things she wanted him to do with his tongue. She looked back at him as she sat down next to Chase. He wanted her. She could see it in his eyes. The feeling was mutual, but it was not going to get him out of working on his speech. She'd make sure of that.

Mary Ann and her brother Mark joined the losers pool in the next couple of rounds, leaving one chair, House, and Doris Wilson. Foreman started the player and _Climb Ev'ry Mountain_ began to play. Doris kept her eyes on House's the whole time, and he tried hard to avoid hers, despite that might mean a trip to the losers pool. The CD stopped, and both dove for the chair. Cameron giggled to herself. They were actually pretty evenly matched between House's leg and Doris's age. House came out in the chair, and was about to yell victory when Doris sat in his lap and proclaimed a tie.

House turned white, and Chase snickered and nudged Cameron who laughed too. He began that nervous fidgeting he did around Doris, squirming around until she got up, and she saw the other, slightly less obvious reason why he wouldn't have wanted her on his lap. She covered a hand with her mouth to keep from laughing any louder. She felt sorry for him, yes, but still, it was so funny.

They put the room back in order, and said their good nights, and went their separate ways. Doris gave House a hug good-bye in the parking lot and whispered something in his ear. He clapped a hand to his head, and she left, winking at him as she made her exit. Cameron watched her leave and raised an eyebrow at him.

"What'd she say?"

"That it was an immense pleasure to sit in my lap, simply delightful." He groaned and slapped his hand against his forehead again.

Cameron broke into a fresh fit of giggles. "Yea, I bet it was a pleasure for her. It was for me too, and all I got to do was look."

"I do believe I have no idea what you're talking about." She smiled at him, knowingly, and caught the slightest hint of a blush on his face.

"Your ears are red," she giggled, as they climbed in her car.

"Are not."

"How do you know? You can't see them."

"I just know. I don't get embarrassed."

"Well, if I was you and I had a raging boner and some old lady with a crush on me sat on it, I'd be pretty embarrassed." She laughed as his ears got redder.

"That's just you then. I'm just honored I was able to give her a last thrill before she kicks the bucket."

"Greg!"

"What?! The old bag's ancient. She won't be around forever."

"Still, she's a sweetheart. Which reminds me, I was going to ask exactly what happened with her at Wilson's other wedding."

"I really, really, don't want to get into that right now."

His tone made her not push the subject and they arrived at his place, and went inside. She'd just ask Wilson.

**A/N: Hope you liked this one, I hated it at first, but I guess it grew on me. Please R&R!! No reviews, no updates. Reviews let me know interest is still there. It's not much of an issue for this fic though, so thank you all for that!! **


	16. the speech

**A/N: I wa****sn't going to update anything for awhile, what with my semester starting and all, but I feel obligated to finish this fic, so I will keep updating until it's done! I have roughly 3 more chaps planned, give or take 1, so we're in the final stretch!! I have tentatively set a review goal of 100, but w/e. Please R&R if the mood takes you. I appreciate all the support! Enjoy!!**

**Chapter 16: the speech**

The rest of the drive back was silent, due mostly to the fact that Cameron's imagination had run wild with all the possibilities of what could have happened at Wilson's last wedding between House and Doris. One, in particular, she preferred not to think about, but the chance that they had slept together wormed its way into her brain.

"_Not that Doris isn't a sweetheart, but he's mine__ now, damn__it, plus, you don't sleep with your best friend's mother, you just don't; I don't care how drunk you get._"

She forced the thought out of her mind, determined not to react until she knew for sure.

They arrived at House's place and went in, and House went straight for the bedroom.

"I don't think so!" She said, pulling him back into the other room, or trying to. His feet were glued to his spot in the hallway.

He looked at her pleadingly.

"_You_ need to write your speech for tomorrow," she said, adamantly, kissing the tip of his nose.

"Come on, I'll make it up as I go along. It worked last time." He grabbed her hand and headed for the bedroom again, but this time it was she who stayed glued to her spot.

\

"Not from what I heard. Wilson said it ended up being a tirade against Cuddy and clinic patients, along with the downside to taking a cruise in the Mediterranean. How do you arrive at that point during a wedding speech?"

"Long story," he said and kissed her on the mouth, putting his arms around her. She moaned quietly at the contact, and he used the opportunity to slide his tongue in her mouth. Instinctively, she wrapped hers around his, and closed her eyes. Then she slowly pulled away.

"Nice try. Very nice try, but no dice. You are writing that speech."

She knew, from the dinner earlier, that he wanted her badly, and she wanted him as well, but she had worked hard to plan this wedding, and their friends deserved a perfect day, with nice speeches from friends.

"The sooner you finish, the sooner we can…well…" she reminded him.

"Do the horizontal monster mash?"

"Yes, crudely speaking." She breezed past him to the bedroom, turning to look back at him as she did so with as sexy a smile as she could muster.

"I'll be waiting." She blew him a kiss, walking backward, and smashed into the doorknob.

"Ow!"

"Very nice. I'm seduced beyond all reason now."

Cameron rubbed her back where the doorknob had hit, glared at him, and closed the door.

"Be quiet and get to work," she said gently through the door. "You don't want to disappoint Wilson for the fourth time. He deserves something nice this time, and so does Mary Ann."

"How do you know my other speeches were duds?"

"I know because I know _you_."

He stood in the hall for another moment, hoping she'd reconsider. Then, giving up, he crashed on the couch with a pen and a notepad. He began scribbling, crossing out, and adding, a process that took what seemed like forever. The minutes droned on. He read the final product over, mumbling the words aloud.

"Too mushy, it's like Wilson wrote this himself," he said in disgust, and tore out the sheet of paper, balling it up, and throwing it at the TV.

Meanwhile, Cameron stripped down to her bra and panties and looked in the mirror.

"_They don't match, but that's ok. Hopefully I won't be wearing them much longer, anyhow._"

Then she hopped into bed, pulled the covers up to her neck and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

She began to wonder if he was still in the living room, or even if he was still alive. She glanced at the bedside clock.

"_He should have been finished by now. I thought he'd only take about 10 minutes_."

Curiosity overtaking her, she got out of bed, grabbing one of his discarded shirts to throw on over her underclothes. She opened the door. The light was still on. She crept down the hallway.

"Greg?"

She stopped at the entrance to the living room, and smiled.

He was fast asleep, snoring quietly.

"_Mr. o__ver__-__eager, and he goes and falls asleep_," she thought with a shake of her head and a grin on her face. She padded over to the couch, and snatched the notepad from where it had fallen to the floor. The speech was half done, and was about nothing in particular, mostly Wilson's foibles, past girlfriends, and ex-wives.

She shook her head again. No good. She tore the page out and put it in the trash. Then she noticed the ball of paper in front of the TV. She picked it up and un-crinkled it, wincing every time the paper crackled. Once it was flat, she read it. There were tons of cross-outs and add-ins, but it was perfect. She hadn't even been aware he could think like this, and yet, here it was, all on paper.

"_Oh, he's reading this. And if he refuses, I'm sure someone will volunteer to read it_."

She stowed the speech in her purse, shut the light off, and went back to the bedroom, not wanting to wake him up.

When House woke up, the lights were off, and his notepad and pen were nowhere to be seen. He wiped his mouth, and yawned, wondering how long he'd been out. Probably about 20 minutes or so. He put his feet on the floor, and stood up, crashing back on the sofa immediately as his feet made contact with the pen on the floor. He picked it up and threw it on the coffee table, noting that the pad of paper was already there. Then he glanced at the clock.

"_I was out that long!?_"

First things first. He turned the light on and flipped through the notepad for his speech. It wasn't there. Oh, well, he'd make it up as he went along. Just like the other times. Wilson would survive and Mary Ann would get over it. She'd probably hate him like all the rest of Wilson's wives, but that didn't concern him at all.

All he cared about now was getting to Cameron. He shut the light off, and went to his bedroom, noting the soft glow of light that filtered beneath the door. The bedside lamp was on anyway. She was probably reading or something. He opened the door, already removing his shirt as he went. He pulled it over his head, and dropped it to the floor. An amused look appeared on his face as he observed the scene within.

She was asleep, the book she'd been reading on the floor next to the side of the bed. She was snoring lightly, and looked like she'd been asleep for awhile. She was holding one of his shirts, clutching it like a beloved childhood blanket.

He sighed, realization dawning on him that he wouldn't be getting any tonight. And there was no way they were having sex tomorrow night either.

"_No way am I having sex with the knowledge that Wilson is also having sex. __Ewwww_"

He finished stripping in the soft light from the lamp and went around to her side of the bed, and shut it off, bathing the room in darkness. He went around to his side, and crawled in with as little motion as possible in an effort to not disturb her sleep, since he didn't know whether or not she'd be a total bitch at being woken up in this manner.

Once in bed, he reached for her, and pulled her gently to him. The motion made her open her eyes, and she smiled at their close proximity.

"Hey."

"Hey yourself. You should have woken me up."

"That would have been like setting a land mine off. You know how you get when you're woken up."

"And you're not like that?"

"You tell me. You woke me up." She kissed him softly, and cuddled closer to him, just enjoying the feel of being in his arms.

"I suppose sex is out of the question for tonight," he stated.

"This is just as good."

"Speak for yourself…wait a minute, I thought you wanted it tonight."

"I did…I do…I just…took care of myself tonight."

"What?!"

"Like I said, I wasn't gonna risk waking you up, and you just looked so adorable, all curled up on the couch, and…I just couldn't."

"I looked adorable?!"

"Yes."

He groaned. "Oh, my god. Torture me a bit more, o cruel mistress of the vibrator."

She rolled her eyes. "You'll make it." She kissed him again, and settled in to go to sleep, wrapping her arms around him as well, a smile on her face as she heard him muttering obscenities in the dark.

**A/N: Well, what did you think? I'm bound and determined to keep my T rating for this story, so unfortunately, no smut. There's some in one of my other ****fics****, if that floats your boat, but I just like this one without. Hope you liked it!**


	17. gas station gifts

**A/N: Ok, I'm back!! I'm busy, busy, busy, but this needs to get wrapped up. I don't like having so many in progress fics. One has to go, and this one's the closest to being done, so it's getting my exclusive attention right now. R&R please, and enjoy!**

**Chapter 17: gas station gifts**

Cameron never wanted to wake up. She just wanted to sleep, for a month, maybe longer, so long as she could stay wrapped in House's arms. She was right where she wanted to be; everything was perfect. At some point during the bliss that was sleeping and dreaming about him, she was faintly aware of a buzzing noise. This was immediately pushed out of her mind, and eventually it faded away and disappeared altogether.

She was in the middle of another wonderful dream, when it was invaded by the sound of _Don't Worry, Be Happy_ by Bobby McFerrin playing. This triggered a signal in her brain, which made her think:

"_Where is that coming from?_"

Another thought followed the first initial one, reminding her that this was her cell phone ringtone.

"_But why is my phone ringing in my dream?_"

At this point, her sleep-addled mind made the connection, and she sat bolt upright in bed, instantly awake, throwing House's head from her chest in the process. She grabbed the phone.

"Hello? What?! No, it's…" She glanced quickly at the clock. "Oh, my god!! No, it's fine. We'll be on time, don't worry! Thanks, Foreman." She hung up, practically flinging the phone away from her in her haste. Then she hurtled from the bed like a rocket, racing for the bathroom and yelling at House to get up on the way.

"I'm already awake, thank you very much. I think you gave me whiplash when you sat up."

He got up and waited for her to finish her shower. She finished in record time, came out, still dripping wet, and shoved him into the bathroom.

"We're so late, so late, my god! Hurry, hurry!"

"Yea, yea, we'll be fine, don't worry about it."

"Stop talking and shower!!" She raced into the kitchen, her wet feet slipping on the tile, where she put on a pot of coffee, and went back to the bedroom to get dressed.

House came out of the bathroom, and found her putting on her shoes, dyed light yellow to match the color of the dress.

"Ugh!!"

"Shut up and get dressed. I know it's ugly, but it's what Mary Ann picked."

"That is beyond ugly. You look like Little Bo Peep. You just need a lamb and a shepherd's crook. The bows are frightening."

"You're wasting time again!! Clothes. On. Now." She went to the closet and pulled out the tux hanging up in the back. She laid it carefully on the bed so it wouldn't wrinkle, and headed back to the kitchen.

"Coffee's on when you're done."

She collapsed in a chair with her coffee cup and took a deep breath. She looked at the clock. They were going to be ok; they were going to make it. She took a sip and looked up as he came out. Her breath caught in her throat. From the polished black shoes to the light blue tie, he looked perfect. Absolutely perfect.

"Did you…comb your hair?"

"Yes, but don't get used to it. I didn't want to give Wilson, or you, anything to bitch about."

"What did you comb it with? I didn't find a comb when I looked last time." She hoped he hadn't pulled the evil Stacey comb out of the trash.

"I just used my fingers. They can comb hair, ya know."

"You look perfect."

"So do you…if the dress wasn't in the equation."

"Never mind the damn dress. Have a cup of coffee, and brush your teeth. We gotta leave soon." She retreated back into the bathroom to brush her own teeth, and called over her shoulder as she went.

"Get the present ready, and put it by my purse so we don't forget it."

She had just started brushing when he appeared behind her. She watched his reflection in the mirror as he said,

"What present?"

She spit the toothpaste in the sink, and replied in a 'well, duh' tone, "The wedding present, of course."

"I never got one."

"Well, I didn't." Her eyes grew wide in the mirror.

"We don't have a gift!!" She looked at the time again.

"And there's no time to go shopping for one!"

She began breathing heavily, and he walked her into the bedroom and made her sit on the bed.

"Calm down. I'll just find something around here we can give them. It's not a big deal."

"No!! What are you thinking? We can't give them something used! That's so…tacky."

"Better tacky then show up empty-handed, don't you think?"

Cameron considered.

"No, think of something else. I won't do that…Scratch that, there's no time to think! We gotta go!"

She stood up again, and headed out the door without her purse. House followed her, calmly, and picked up her purse on the way, slinging it over his shoulder without thinking. She arrived at her car, and automatically reached for her purse at her side, only to find that it wasn't there. She groaned in exasperation, and turned around to go get it, only to bump into House, who was coming up behind her.

"Forget something?"

"Yea, my- …" She cut herself off as she noticed her purse dangling at his side. She sighed and let a soft laugh escape her.

"Fashion statement?"

He rolled his eyes, removed the purse, and held it out to her.

She got in, and began driving to the park where the wedding was to take place. It was a beautiful day, at least, a soft breeze blowing occasionally, and not a cloud in the sky.

"Pull in there," House said suddenly.

"Where?"

"There." He pointed.

She looked at him quizzically, but obeyed. She waited while he went into the gas station, banging her head on the steering wheel as he came out again with a large paper sack.

"Problem solved," he said, climbing back into the car.

"You got the wedding present from a gas station?!"

"Correction: wedding present_s_. Nothing but the best for Wilson and Mary Ann."

Cameron banged her head several more times, resigned herself to the fact that Wilson and Mary Ann were getting gas station gifts, and pulled out.

"This is unbelievable."

"What? Everything's fine. We have a gift, 7 to be exact, we're going to be on time, and it's actually a nice day. Wilson's last wedding, it poured rain, and his first wedding was in January for some reason, and there was a ton of snow and ice on the ground."

Cameron allowed herself to relax at that point. Things could be a lot worse. As soon as that thought crossed her mind, traffic came to a standstill. House rolled down his window and peeked out.

"Accident up ahead."

"No, no, no, no."

"You thought that things could be a lot worse, didn't you?"

Her brow furrowed. "Yes, actually, I did."

"Shouldn't have done that."

Cameron sighed, and reached for the radio dial. No news about the traffic, just some happy, peppy, pop song. She shut the radio off, not in the mood for anything peppy at the moment.

_Don't Worry, Be Happy_ began playing, and Cameron put her phone to her ear.

"We're about 5 minutes away, stuck in traffic. Ok, thank you."

She hung up the phone. "Foreman's going to tell them what's going on. Most of the guests have already arrived."

"We could get out and walk the rest of the way."

"And leave my car? Are you crazy?"

"Not as crazy as you are about the idea of being late. Get out. You walk. I'll stay with the car. That way, at least you won't be late. And I don't have to chance you having some kind of cardiac episode either."

"I'm fine, really. I just wanted everything to be perfect today for them."

"It will be, perfect enough for Wilson anyway. It can't be totally perfect unless Doris isn't there."

"Not if you're late. It won't be perfect without you."

"Sure it will, and if I am late, I'll get to make a grand entrance. Just go, and quit arguing."

She got out of the car, and they switched places.

"Thank you," she said, kissing him before beginning the short walk to the park.

"Don't mention it. Really. Never again."

**A/N: I despise this chapter with all my heart and soul. Let me know what you thought of it. Thank you so much in advance!!**


	18. the wedding

**A/N: Hurrah! Wedding time, at last!! And the second to last chap! (I think) Enjoy and pretty please R&R!! **

**Chapter 18: the wedding**

By the time Cameron arrived at the park, she was out of breath, one of her heels had broken off, and she felt miserable. But at least they hadn't started yet. She hobbled over to where Susan was standing, and gave her a small smile.

"What happened to you? Oh, my god!" the other woman said, immediately getting to work touching up Cameron's makeup and fixing her hair.

"Don't ask. It's been a nightmare."

"Good news is, we haven't started yet."

Cameron looked down at her shoe, pulled the other one off and tried to break the heel off so at least her shoes would match. The heel wouldn't break.

"Come on, the other one snapped off easy!" She then began banging the shoe against the wall of the pavilion, anything that might get it to snap, to no avail.

She lost her temper then, and hurled the shoe out of sight, wincing when she heard the telltale plop as it landed in the nearby pond.

Susan came up behind her and squeezed her shoulder.

"Nothing wrong with walking the aisle barefoot," she said with a smile.

Cameron went into the pavilion and carried out her duties, helping Mary Ann get ready.

"You look beautiful," she said, hugging her friend.

"So do you, sweetheart! But, where are your shoes?"

Cameron related the shoe story, and Mary Ann giggled softly when she came to the part about throwing the shoe in the pond.

"Don't worry about it. Heels are murder, anyhow. My feet hurt already. There's no way I'm wearing these at the reception."

Once Mary Ann was ready, Cameron excused herself and went back outside into the fresh air.

"Alison! I'm so glad you're here! We were getting worried?" Doris Wilson came up to her, wrapping her in a soft hug, so unlike the ones she gave House.

She stood back from Cameron and looked around, then gave a little gasp with her hand over her mouth.

"Where's my Gregory?"

"He's parking the car. He'll be along shortly."

"I see. Couldn't have a wedding without the best man, can we?" She smiled, and sauntered off towards her son.

Cameron watched her go; her curiosity over the Doris/House connection growing with each passing minute. Then she looked around for House.

After a minute or two, she saw him carrying the paper bag of gifts which he dumped unceremoniously on the gift table, and then he went off in search of Wilson.

She groaned inwardly at the sight of the paper bag amongst all the brightly colored gifts, then out loud when she noticed he had scrawled 'To Wilson and M.A. from Cameron and her Sugar Daddy' in big letters on one side.

Her curiosity reaching a breaking point, she went to find Wilson. She found him with House, adjusting his tie, for what Cameron figured was probably the hundredth time.

"Come on, Wilson, it's fine!"

"No it isn't, it's crooked, and my shirt is too stiff, and I look like I crawled out of a garbage can."

"No you don't, _I _look like I crawled out of a garbage can," Cameron said by way of greeting.

The two men looked over at her, and two pairs of eyes went instantly to her feet.

"You're not wearing shoes," House said.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," she said, kissing him and thanking him again for taking the car.

"Yea, yea, I told you not to mention it again. Now, would you please tell Wilson his friggin tie is straight so he'll shut up?"

Cameron looked at the straight tie, then at Wilson. "It's straight."

"If you say so," he began smoothing out his jacket.

"What?! I tell you 25 times that the damn thing's straight, and you argue with me all the way; She comes in here, tells you it's straight once, and you believe her?"

Wilson shrugged. "She's a woman. It's…different somehow, to hear it from a woman."

House rolled his eyes, and went over to a nearby when he saw Doris lurking nearby. He was too slow though, as she noticed him and waved, coming over to the tree, calling "Yoo-hoo! Gregory!" as she went. Cameron stifled a laugh, and realized it would be a good time to ask Wilson.

"Wilson, could I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"What is up with your mom and Greg? Something about a previous wedding of yours?"

Wilson took a deep breath. "Yea."

"Could you tell me?"

Wilson ran a hand through his hair, and led her to a bench.

"My parents had just separated. My mom had never met him before, and as you can imagine, I wasn't looking forward to the meeting. I don't think I need to say why. I introduced them before the ceremony, and my mother was…quite taken with him. I, to this day, have no idea why."

"I think I do," Cameron broke in.

"Anyway, she wouldn't take her eyes off him through the whole thing, and stayed glued to him throughout the reception. He tried everything to get away from her, even for a few minutes. He'd go get her a drink, or talk to the band about a song, anything like that. I know my mother can be a little…enthusiastic, so I wasn't mad at him or anything. He was clearly uncomfortable. And he's not used to all that attention. Naturally, he drank a lot. And, you know how it is when you get drunk. You…do things you wouldn't normally do."

"Wait, what are you saying?" Cameron's eyes took on an expression of worry. She had hoped she hadn't been right about them sleeping together. If they had, though, it was kind of weird that Wilson knew…unless he'd caught them or something. She stopped herself there before her imagination got any wilder.

"It wasn't what you're thinking. That would just be…ewww. He did kiss her though, made out with her really, which is disgusting enough. I stopped him before it got further than that. He would've killed himself the next day if it had been more than that. And I know my mother. She would have thought they were going to get married, and live happily ever after. Thank goodness she was a bit tipsy as well. Unfortunately, she didn't forget what happened, and neither did he."

"So, that's why she's still all over him. She remembers."

"Pretty much. Don't break up with him, or who knows what'll happen. I don't need my best friend for a step-father."

"She doesn't live around here, does she?"

"No, she lives in Florida. Last time, she visited me, House was with Stacey. I'm sure though, that if House became single again, she'd take it upon herself to move up here."

"Well, no worries there. I, for one, have no intention of letting him be single. Ever again."

Wilson raised an eyebrow. "Ever again?"

Cameron felt her face flush. "Well, you know, as long as he'll have me."

"I think he'll have you for quite awhile. Who knows, maybe you'll be the next down the aisle." He grinned at her and she felt herself grinning back. They shared a hug, and were broken apart by House yelling.

"Wilson, get your ass over here! You wanna get married today, or what?"

"I guess that's my cue," Wilson left her standing there for a moment before she headed back to the pavilion.

The wedding started then, and she saw Wilson get in his place, with House at his side, seemingly not paying attention. Then she went down the aisle, hearing several whispers as she did. She assumed they were concerning her lack of footwear. She passed Cuddy as she went, squeezing the hand she held out. If she had looked towards the back of the guest seating, she would have noticed another dark haired woman who had arrived a bit late, and sat inconspicuously in the back row. Susan went down next, and then the wedding march played, and Mary Ann walked gracefully down the aisle on the arm of her brother.

Cameron watched feeling a pang of sadness that Mary Ann's father was no longer around to walk his daughter down the aisle. It brought back a memory of her own wedding, and how proud she knew her father had felt. She looked from Mary Ann to House, who instantly avoided her eyes. No doubt he'd seen her observing Mary Ann with that wistful look in her eyes. She cursed herself for it; the last thing she wanted to do was scare him off.

She compensated by looking over at Doris, in the front row and dabbing at her eyes with a hankie. She was sitting between Chase and Foreman, both of whom appeared uncomfortable, and kept inching away from her at intervals, not wanting to be too close. House followed her gaze, and fell on Doris. He shuddered almost imperceptibly, but Doris had seen his eyes on her, and blew him a kiss, winking at him as she did. He fidgeted a bit, and then pretended he was looking elsewhere.

Mary Ann took her place next to Wilson, and the ceremony continued without a hitch. Cameron felt tears come to her eyes several times during the proceedings, and dabbed at them with a gloved hand. It was all just so sweet. There was no sweeter thing than being forever bound to the one you loved. This thought made her glance at House again. He kept his eyes glued on Wilson, not so much as glancing in her direction.

Once the ceremony ended, the wedding party and guests broke up to drive to the banquet hall for the reception. Cameron couldn't find House, so she went up to Chase and Foreman, who were helping to get all the gifts ready for transport to the hall.

"Hey, have you guys seen Greg?

"I think he's over there, hiding from Doris," Chase said, pointing to another tree.

"Are you gonna be ok to get to the car, with no shoes? That gravel's gonna hurt," Foreman asked.

"Yea, I'll just have him move the car up and get me so I don't have to walk. I'll see you guys at the reception." She headed off, hoping they hadn't seen their gift yet, but Chase's voice caught her ears.

"What's this?" She turned around and saw him pick up the paper bag. A wave of embarrassment washed over her as he read the writing on the side.

"Sugar Daddy?"

She flushed again. "Shut up."

"What's in here?" He peeked inside, and looked at her, confused. "Where'd you get this stuff?"

"At the gas station on Elm."

Both Chase and Foreman looked at her questioningly, and Cameron briefly related the reason for the gas station gifts.

She was saved as House grabbed her arm.

"Let's go. Mary Ann's distracting Doris! As Wilson wives go, she's not half bad."

"Can you pull the car up and get me? I can't really cross the parking lot barefoot."

He released her arm and went off without another word, eager to put some distance between himself and Doris. Cameron waited, and when he pulled up, she said her good-byes to Chase and Foreman. At that moment, Doris ended her conversation with Mary Ann and spotted them. She waved and started over. House honked the horn.

"Stop chit-chatting and get in here!! Doris is coming!" He reached over and opened her door. "Move!" She complied, and climbed in. The door was halfway shut when he took off, and Cameron quickly shut it the rest of the way.

"Greg! I'm not even buckled yet! She wouldn't have made it over here."

"Don't underestimate her. That crone can haul ass. And, you could be buckling up now, instead of chewing me out."

She buckled up and leaned against the seat with a sigh as they made their way to the banquet hall. She still had the reception to get through.

**A/N: What did you think? Hope you liked it!! Thanks in advance for R&Ring.**


	19. the reception

**A/N: Well, here we are. The end. Thank you so much to all who R&R'd. I broke 100 reviews!! I'm so excited about that. I hope you liked this fic, and I hope you enjoy this chap!**** Thanks to JB and userunfriend for the bag ideas!**

**Chapter 19: the reception**

When they arrived at the banquet hall, Cameron was alarmed when she saw that the parking lot was full. How could they have been last? They hadn't even been the last to leave. Surely, Foreman and Chase weren't there yet with the gifts. Her hope was dashed when they entered, House ever on the lookout for Doris, and she saw the table full of gifts, the paper bag in the middle, like the centerpiece from hell.

She ran a hand over her face, and let House drag her to the table at the head of the room, where the rest of the wedding party was already seated. They took their places, House next to Wilson, and Cameron next to Mary Ann. House shufted uncomfortably, for Doris was only one spot away from him, Mary Ann's brother Mark in between them. Cameron looked out at the tables of guests, chatting amiably and munching the little mints and candies that were at the center of each table.

Her heart skipped a beat when her eyes fell on a dark haired woman seated with Cuddy. The two women were talking and laughing together. It was Stacey. Cameron was about to ask Mary Ann why she was there, but then remembered that she and Wilson had been friends. Of course he'd invite her. She leaned forward until she felt her head hit the tablecloth. She looked over at House. He was keeping an eye on Doris. He hadn't noticed Stacey yet.

Wilson stood up and clinked his glass with his fork. Everyone quieted down and focused on him. He thanked them all for coming and expressed his love and appreciation for his bride. It was a cute little speech, and Cameron felt herself get misty eyed. Mary Ann spoke next and Cameron had the same reaction. She looked over at House to find him looking at her. Which of them was next? She suddenly couldn't recall. She bit her lip in thought for a moment, decided it didn't matter, and stood up.

She talked about how she'd first met Mary Ann through a patient, and had then introduced her to Wilson. She said they deserved each other because they were both caring, compassionate people. She knew their marriage would last forever. She could have gone on. Her original had been longer, but she figured people were hungry and didn't want to listen to her all evening.

House stood up.

"I don't really have anything prepared, which reminds me of Wilson's last wedding…"

"Wait!" Cameron called, not liking the direction the speech was going. Heads turned to look at her. She dug in her purse and came up with the draft she'd found in a ball in front of the TV the previous night. "You can read this."

"No way. I'll improvise."

Cameron opened her mouth to reply, but Doris Wilson stood up.

"Nonsense, Gregory. I'm sure it's wonderful. I'll read it if you like."

He looked like he was going to argue, but he was too nervous about contradicting Wilson's mother.

"Wonderful! Pass it to me Alison, if you would please." Cameron passed it to Mary Ann, who passed it to Wilson, who passed it around House to Mark. From there, it went into Doris's hands, and there was no getting it back.

She cleared her throat and put on her reading glasses.

"Wilson, I'm glad you're getting married, again, because maybe now you'll be happy. As your friend, and nothing more, I suppose it's my job to make sure you're happy. And Mary Ann makes you that way. I've known you forever, and I've seen you unhappy. Don't be that way anymore. You'll depress Mary Ann. Anyway, this is the worst speech in the world, and there's no way you or anyone else will ever hear it, so, in conclusion, I hope you'll be together forever and make each other complete."

There was a heartfelt 'awww' from the guests, and a noise of disgust from House.

"That was just beautiful, Gregory. It was short and sweet." Doris dabbed at her eyes with her hankie.

"Thank you, House," Wilson said with a smile.

"That was sweet," Mary Ann added.

"Yea, yea, yea. Cut the damn cake so we can eat. That'll shut you all up."

The cake was cut and everyone got food and sat back down to eat. Cameron kept glancing back at Stacey. She was still talking to Cuddy and stuffing her face with cake.

"_Cow_," Cameron thought, cutting a small piece of cake with her fork and lifting it daintily to her mouth. Unfortunately, the piece fell off the fork halfway to her mouth, and fell in her lap, leaving a chocolate stain on the front of her dress on its way down. She groaned and dabbed at it with her napkin, succeeding only in spreading it around more. She didn't want to get up and draw attention to herself, so she just continued on like nothing had happened.

After food, it was time to throw the bouquet. Cameron got up and joined the other single women behind Mary Ann. She smiled at Susan and Cuddy, and glared at Stacey, alone at her table and still eating, when the other woman wasn't looking.

"Ok, is everybody ready?" Mary Ann asked. A chorus of yeses answered her and a drumroll began. She pitched the bouquet and it sailed through the air. Cameron ran for it but her bare feet slipped on the tiled floor and she went down. She dived for the bouquet and hit the floor.

She came up victorious and held the bouquet aloft amidst cheers. She got up, straightened her hair, smoothed the stained dress, and went back to the table with the bouquet in hand, silently triumphant.

Then Wilson threw Mary Ann's garter. House stood in one spot, amongst a few other men, and caught it one handed as it sailed through the air with about half the gusto of Mary Ann's bouquet.

"I'm adding this to my collection," he stated, and went back to the table.

"How'd you know where to stand?" Cameron asked.

"I've been to all of Wilson's weddings. He throws it the same way, same speed, from the same spot every time. Good ol' predictable Wilson." He stashed the garter in his pocket, and looked around for Doris. He couldn't find her, but his eyes fell on Stacey, in a simple maroon pantsuit and heels.

"What's _that _doing here? Wilson!" Wilson came back over the table.

"Why is Stacey here?"

"Because she's my friend and I wanted to invite her. I honestly didn't think she'd show up."

He shrugged and jogged back to Mary Ann, leading her back to the table so they could open gifts. Chase brought them the first one, Foreman the second, and so on. Cameron held her breath when she saw Chase return with theirs. Wilson and Mary Ann read the side of the bag, and Wilson cast House a puzzled glance.

"It's a long story," Cameron explained, embarrassed.

Wilson reached into the bag and came out with an air freshener shaped like a pine tree. He held it up and looked at House.

"You don't see those every day. Could be a real collector's item," he justified. Wilson shook his head with a grin, and let Mary Ann pull out the next item. She came out with a T-shirt that stated, 'I'm with stupid' with an arrow pointing to the side.

"There's a matching on in there for Wilson. I figured you could wear it when you argue. And both count as one item, so there's 5 to go."

Mary Ann folded the T-shirt and placed it on the table, fishing out Wilson's as well. Wilson reached in and came out with a box of condoms.

"Come on, House!"

"What? You can never have too many, after all. Now, you guys can go crazy. Like rabbits."

This seemed to be a prompt to pull out another item. Mary Ann did so, and came out plastic headbands with bunny ears attached. There were two sets.

"Like I said…" House explained.

By this time, Cameron was thoroughly embarrassed and was hiding her head in her folded arms on the table to avoid showing her red face to the rest of the room.

The next gift was a coupon book.

"$4 off an oil change in there," House called.

Wilson then pulled out a novelty foam finger, not huge one since it fit in the bag, but a foam finger all the same. He noted which finger was being held up and replaced it immediately in the bag.

"I figured you could find some use for that. If nothing else, give it to me. I'll find plenty of uses for it."

The last gift was a postcard featuring bikini clad women on the beach, and the caption 'wish you were here.'

"What's the meaning of this one?" Mary Ann asked.

"You can send that to me while you're on your honeymoon."

"Thank you House and Cameron, although I'm guessing Cameron didn't have anything to do with picking the gifts," Wilson said, putting the items back in the bag.

"Anytime," House replied. Cameron just smiled.

After the gifts had been put away, the music started and Wilson and Mary Ann went to the floor for their dance. Cameron watched them happily, and glanced over at House, noting how his eyes kept darting this way and that. Doris was MIA again. That always made him nervous.

"Do you wanna dance?" she asked him. He looked over at her as if he hadn't noticed her presence until that moment.

"What?"

"I said, 'do you wanna dance?'"

"If it'll keep Doris off of me," she looked dejectedly at him. "And, of course, because I would love to dance with you."

"That's what I thought you said," she put her hand in his and they went to the floor. They stood close and just wrapped their arms around each other. Cameron was in heaven. She felt as if she were floating on a cloud. It didn't even matter to her that they weren't actually moving, just that they were close. Wilson noticed them dancing, Cameron's head resting comfortably on House's shoulder, and went over to the DJ. He talked with him for a moment, then went jogging back to Mary Ann.

The song 'Beauty and the Beast' began to play and House looked over at Wilson.

"I know this is your doing, Wilson," he called to him. Wilson just grinned.

"Oh, stop it. It's perfect," Cameron murmured, caught up in the song and the smell of him. He shut up and held her until the song was over. Once it ended, she reached up and kissed him gently, thrilled as she always was when she felt him kiss her back. Then they went back to the table, sitting next to each other and talking about nothing in particular.

Cameron noticed Stacey coming back from the restroom. She was coming down the stairs when she fell over the last one and landed on her ass on the floor. Cameron stifled a giggle and tried to look concerned and worried as several people went to help her. House observed her reaction.

"Thrilled about the misery of others? If you are, it's a major turn on."

Cameron giggled again. "Just hers. Besides, she's wearing very high heels. You warned me about those, remember?"

"Yep. And I warned her too, after last time. She doesn't listen."

As it turned out, Stacey had hurt her ankle, and Susan offered to drive her to the hospital to get it looked at. Once she was gone, Cameron felt more at ease, less self-conscious. She took turns with Cuddy, both sharing a dance with Wilson. Then she shared one with Chase, under House's watchful eye, and then with Foreman. They all did the chicken dance, even House, and good times were had all around.

The reception began to break up at 11, and House and Cameron were among the last to leave.

"That was so much fun. I never want Wilson to get married again, but that was fun! Even though I stained my dress, and my feet are freezing that was great!" she gushed. House led her to the car after they said all their good-byes and they drove home.

Her hand found his thigh and she rubbed it suggestively.

"Ya know, we never did do anything last night," she reminded him.

"Nor will we do anything tonight."

This confused her. "Why not?"

"Because of Wilson and Mary Ann."

"What about them?"

"They're going to be having sex too. It's just gross."

Cameron sighed. "Whatever you say. I'll wait."

"_I'll wait as long as I have to_," she thought, already thinking about what wedding dress she would wear.

**A/N: There it is! I'm so sad it's over, but it had to happen sometime. I hope you've enjoyed this chap and the fic itself. **


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